Advances in systemic therapy of small cell cancer of the lung

Over the last 20 years, progress in the therapy of small cell lung cancer has been painfully slow. Despite dramatic initial responses to chemotherapy, most patients relapse quickly with an overall 5-year survival of about 5%. Recent trials however offer some hope at changing this picture. Combining standard regimens with newer agents has doubled median survival in some cases. The use of novel targeted agents holds the promise of significantly increasing the survival in this disease, with manageable toxicity. This review outlines current treatment strategies, summarizes recent clinical trials and offers a view of what the next 5 years may hold for the treatment of small cell lung cancer.