Comparing Radiation Techniques for Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer

In the phase III RTOG 0617 trial, adding cetuximab to concurrent carboplatin–paclitaxel chemotherapy had no survival benefit in patients with locally advanced non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), whether radiation was delivered at 60 Gy or 74 Gy. In a secondary analysis of 482 trial participants, researchers focused on the radiation technique, comparing intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT; 47% of patients) versus three-dimensional conformal external beam radiation (3D-CRT; 53%).

The IMRT and 3D-CRT groups generally had similar baseline characteristics, although IMRT recipients were nonsignificantly more likely to have stage 3B disease (39% vs. 30%). In the context of treatment, IMRT recipients had a significantly larger planning treat…