Vincristine and etoposide: an effective chemotherapy regimen with reduced toxicity in extensive small-cell lung cancer.

Chemotherapy prolongs survival of patients with small-cell lung cancer, but very few are cured, and the treatment is unpleasant. Thirty patients, 28 with advanced disease, were treated with etoposide 250 mg/m2 orally, daily for 5 days, plus vincristine 2 mg intravenously on the first day, the cycle being repeated 3-weekly, to a maximum of 6. There was a response rate of 70%, a median survival of 249 days, and an 11% 2-year survival. Symptomatic side-effects were less pronounced than with most other regimens of comparable efficacy.