Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) comprises the majority of lung cancers.According to the results presented at the 2006 annual meeting of the European Society for Medical Oncology, the combination consisting of Platinol (cisplatin) plus Navelbine (vinorelbine) improves survival among non-small cell lung cancer patients whose cancer has been surgically removed.

Early stage lung cancer is usually treated with surgery, chemotherapy or radiation therapy. The use of adjuvant chemotherapy has not shown in the past to have improved survival.

This study included data from almost two thousand patients with early stage lung cancer. Patients were treated with either adjuvant Platinol/Navelbine or no chemotherapy at all. The study showed that at five years 55 percent of patients who were treated with the chemotherapy combination were alive compared to only 46 percent who received no further treatment after surgery.

The researchers concluded that adjuvant chemotherapy consisting of Platinol/Navelbine improves survival at five years among patients with NSCLC who were able to have their cancer completely removed by surgery.