In which variety of lung cancer cranial irradiation is also given in treatment?
High-Yield Explanation
ANSWER: (B) Small cell cancerREF: Harrison's 18th ed chapter 89Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation:Prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI) should be considered in all patients with LD (local disease) - and ED (extended disease)-Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) who has responded to initial therapy. A meta-analysis including 7 trials and 987 patients with LD-SCLC who had achieved a complete remission following primary chemotherapy reported a 5.4% improvement in overall survival for patients treated with PCI. In patients with ED-SCLC who had responded to first- line chemotherapy, PCI reduced the occurrence of symptomatic brain metastases and prolonged disease-free and overall survival compared to no radiation therapy. Long-term toxicides includingdeficits in cognition have been reported following PCI and are difficult to sort out from the effects of chemotherapy or normal aging.