Reconsidering the Cutoff Value for Sensitive and Refractory Relapses in Extensive-Stage SCLC in the Era of Immunotherapy.

INTRODUCTION: Traditionally, relapsed SCLC has been classified as "sensitive" or "refractory" on the basis of cutoff values (60 or 90 d) for the duration between the last chemotherapy and disease progression. Nevertheless, these cutoff values are not derived from rigorous analytical methods, and their applicability to contemporary treatments remains uncertain. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective multicenter study on patients with extensive-stage SCLC who underwent second-line therapy after platinum-doublet chemotherapy with or without immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) resistance before (pre-ICI cohort) and after (post-ICI cohort) approval of combination immunotherapy. We selected the optimal platinum-free interval cutoff value with the lowest two-sided p value in the multivariable Cox regression model for second-line overall survival. The internal validity of the chosen cutoff value was assessed using twofold cross-validation. RESULTS: There were 235 and 98 patients in the pre-ICI and post-ICI cohorts, respectively. In the pre-ICI cohort, the optimal cutoff was 59 days (p = 0.0001); the hazard ratio calculated using twofold cross-validation was 1.31 (95% confidence interval: 0.95-1.82]). In the post-ICI cohort, although the 60- and 90-day cutoff values could predict prognosis (60 d; p = 0.002, 90 d; p = 0.005), the optimal cutoff value was 75 days (p = 0.0002), which resulted in a median second-line overall survival of 15.9 and 5.0 months for patients with sensitive and refractory relapse, respectively (hazard ratio = 2.77, 95% confidence interval: 1.56-4.93). CONCLUSIONS: We clarified the previously ambiguous cutoff values for classifying relapsed SCLC and revealed that the 75-day cutoff most accurately predicts subsequent prognosis than the traditional cutoffs in the post-ICI era.

Real-World Data on Subsequent Therapy for First-Line Osimertinib-Induced Pneumonitis: Safety of EGFR-TKI Rechallenge (Osi-risk Study TORG-TG2101).

BACKGROUND: Although osimertinib is a promising therapeutic agent for advanced epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation-positive lung cancer, the incidence of pneumonitis is particularly high among Japanese patients receiving the drug. Furthermore, the safety and efficacy of subsequent anticancer treatments, including EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) rechallenge, which are to be administered after pneumonitis recovery, remain unclear. OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the safety of EGFR-TKI rechallenge in patients who experienced first-line osimertinib-induced pneumonitis, with a primary focus on recurrent pneumonitis. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the data of patients with EGFR mutation-positive lung cancer who developed initial pneumonitis following first-line osimertinib treatment across 34 institutions in Japan between August 2018 and September 2020. RESULTS: Among the 124 patients included, 68 (54.8%) patients underwent EGFR-TKI rechallenge. The recurrence rate of pneumonitis following EGFR-TKI rechallenge was 27% (95% confidence interval [CI] 17-39) at 12 months. The cumulative incidence of recurrent pneumonitis was significantly higher in the osimertinib group than in the first- and second-generation EGFR-TKI (conventional EGFR-TKI) groups (hazard ratio [HR] 3.1; 95% CI 1.3-7.5; p = 0.013). Multivariate analysis revealed a significant association between EGFR-TKI type (osimertinib or conventional EGFR-TKI) and pneumonitis recurrence, regardless of severity or status of initial pneumonitis (HR 3.29; 95% CI 1.12-9.68; p = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: Osimertinib rechallenge after initial pneumonitis was associated with significantly higher recurrence rates than conventional EGFR-TKI rechallenge.

Predictive Markers for Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have dramatically improved the outcomes of non-small cell lung cancer patients and have increased the possibility of long-term survival. However, few patients benefit from ICIs, and no predictive biomarkers other than tumor programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression have been established. Hence, the identification of biomarkers is an urgent issue. This review outlines the current understanding of predictive markers for the efficacy of ICIs, including PD-L1, tumor mutation burden, DNA mismatch repair deficiency, microsatellite instability, CD8+ tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, human leukocyte antigen class I, tumor/specific genotype, and blood biomarkers such as peripheral T-cell phenotype, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, interferon-gamma, and interleukin-8. A tremendous number of biomarkers are in development, but individual biomarkers are insufficient. Tissue biomarkers have issues in reproducibility and accuracy because of intratumoral heterogeneity and biopsy invasiveness. Furthermore, blood biomarkers have difficulty in reflecting the tumor microenvironment and therefore tend to be less predictive for the efficacy of ICIs than tissue samples. In addition to individual biomarkers, the development of composite markers, including novel technologies such as machine learning and high-throughput analysis, may make it easier to comprehensively analyze multiple biomarkers.

Real-world efficacy of atezolizumab in non-small cell lung cancer: A multicenter cohort study focused on performance status and retreatment after failure of anti-PD-1 antibody.

BACKGROUND: Atezolizumab is a programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) targeted monoclonal antibody that inhibits PD-L1 interacting with its receptors PD-1 and B7-1, thereby enhancing anticancer immunity. Some real-world efficacy and safety studies of anti-PD-1 antibody have been previously reported. However, there have been no reports investigating the efficacy of atezolizumab monotherapy in clinical practice which have focused on performance status and previous anti-PD-1 antibody treatment. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed consecutive advanced NSCLC patients who received atezolizumab monotherapy between April 2018 and February 2019 at eight institutions. A total of 152 patients with NSCLC were enrolled in this study. RESULTS: A total of 38 patients (25%) had already been treated with anti-PD-1 treatment (nivolumab or pembrolizumab) before atezolizumab. The median OS and TTF was 384 days (12.8 months) (95% confidence interval [CI]: 206-424), and 42 days (1.4 months) (95% CI: 27-56) in all patients, respectively. ECOG PS 0 had significantly longer OS (median OS; not reached, p < 0.0001) and TTF (median TTF; 63 days, p = 0.012) compared with PS 1 or 2-3. Most retreated patients were unable to continue atezolizumab for a longer period, but seven patients (18.4%) were able to continue atezolizumab over four months as an ICI retreatment. CONCLUSIONS: In previously treated advanced NSCLC patients, atezolizumab monotherapy demonstrated good efficacy and safety regardless of heavily treated patients in real-world clinical practice, and ECOG PS 0 was a favorable predictive factor. The efficacy of retreatment with atezolizumab was limited but was well tolerated in patients treated with prior anti-PD-1 antibody.

Nivolumab-induced Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada-like Syndrome and Adrenocortical Insufficiency with Long-term Survival in a Patient with Non-small-cell Lung Cancer.

A 58-year-old man was diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma with a tumor proportion score of 10%. After six cycles of second-line chemotherapy with nivolumab, he achieved a complete response (CR) but developed uveitis and sensorineural hearing disorder, which were consistent with Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH)-like syndrome. Simultaneously, pituitary adrenocortical insufficiency was identified. Nivolumab discontinuation and systemic corticosteroid administration resolved these immune-related adverse events (irAEs). The patient has maintained a CR without any chemotherapy for approximately two years. We herein report a patient with a long-term progression-free survival despite chemotherapy discontinuation due to irAEs, including VKH-like syndrome, which were appropriately managed.

Afatinib + bevacizumab combination therapy in EGFR-mutant NSCLC patients with osimertinib resistance: Protocol of an open-label, phase II, multicenter, single-arm trial.

INTRODUCTION: As most patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutant non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) develop progressive disease after treatment with osimertinib, it is important to develop more effective treatment options. Afatinib has been shown to be more effective in in vitro studies than osimertinib when used in cancer cell lines containing some specific EGFR mutations. Therefore, afatinib may be an effective solution, especially when used in combination with an anti-VEGF agent such as bevacizumab. METHODS: A phase II multicenter, open-label, single-arm trial has been initiated to evaluate the efficacy and safety of afatinib and bevacizumab combination as salvage therapy for EGFR-mutated lung cancer in patients previously treated with osimertinib. The primary endpoint will be the objective response rate (ORR) and secondary endpoints are progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), disease control rate (DCR), and adverse events (AEs). DISCUSSION: A previous study indicated that afatinib inhibits lung cancer cells with specific EGFR mutations more effectively than other EGFR-TKIs such as osimertinib. Therefore, we expect that combination therapy using afatinib and bevacizumab will be effective in patients previously treated with osimertinib (registration no. jRCTs031190077).

Hepcidin exerts a negative immunological effect in pulmonary tuberculosis without HIV co-infection, prolonging the time to culture-negative.

OBJECTIVES: A major regulatory peptide in iron metabolism, hepcidin, has been shown to predict mortality in HIV-infected tuberculosis patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether plasma hepcidin levels on admission can be used to predict the treatment outcome of patients with smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) without HIV co-infection. METHODS: In this prospective observational study, a total of 35 PTB patients with Mycobacterium tuberculosis-positive sputum smears were enrolled. The relationship between plasma hepcidin levels on admission and the time period to sputum culture-negative was explored. RESULTS: Plasma hepcidin levels of PTB patients were significantly higher than those of healthy subjects (p<0.001). A positive correlation between hepcidin level on admission and the period until culture-negative was also observed (r=0.46, p=0.006). Furthermore, the hepcidin level showed a negative correlation with spot numbers in the positive control wells of the T-SPOT.TB assay; thus the effect of the peptide on interferon-gamma production in T cells was explored. Hepcidin reduced interferon-gamma gene transcription and interferon-gamma production in a dose-dependent manner in Jurkat cells stimulated with phytohaemagglutinin, an antigen non-specific stimulation. CONCLUSIONS: These findings indicate that hepcidin alters immunological reactions against M. tuberculosis infection and has an influence on the outcomes of PTB patients without HIV co-infection.

Detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis-derived DNA in circulating cell-free DNA from a patient with disseminated infection using digital PCR.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) can disseminate to extrapulmonary organs, particularly in severely immunosuppressed patients. Confirmation of active MTB infection is often difficult in subjects with a contraindication for invasive procedures. A case of disseminated MTB infection after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is reported herein. Circulating cell-free DNA from the patient showed positive amplification of an MTB complex-specific sequence using a digital PCR technique. The MTB infection was confirmed by positive acid-fast staining and an approved quantitative PCR assay using liver tissue obtained at autopsy. The detection of MTB in circulating cell-free DNA using this technique may represent a less invasive diagnostic tool for pulmonary and extrapulmonary MTB infections.

The Platelet Count Can Predict In-hospital Death in HIV-negative Smear-positive Pulmonary Tuberculosis Inpatients.

Objective This retrospective cohort study investigated whether the three components of the blood cell count have prognostic implications in HIV-negative Japanese adult inpatients with smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis. Methods We reviewed patients who were treated by the isoniazid, rifampicin, pyrazinamide, and ethambutol regimen or by the isoniazid, rifampicin, and ethambutol regimen. The association between the patient data on admission and the survival outcome was evaluated. Results We reviewed 367 consecutive patients (male, 60.5%) with a median age of 72 [interquartile range (IQR), 54-82] years. While the white blood cell count did not differ between the two groups, (discharged alive: 7,000/µL; IQR, 5,500-9,300; died in hospital: 7,200/µL; IQR, 5,600-9,400; p=0.797), hemoglobin level (discharged alive: 11.5 g/dL; IQR, 10.0-13.1; died in hospital: 9.9 g/dL; IQR, 8.6-11.3; p<0.001) and the platelet count (discharged alive: 275,000/µL; IQR, 206,000-345,000; died in hospital: 149,000/µL; IQR, 93,000-236,000; p<0.001) were lower in patients who died in hospital. After dividing patients into hemoglobin- and platelet-based quantiles, the lower quantile class tended to show poorer survival (log-rank test for trend p<0.001 for both). A multi-variable Cox proportional hazards model revealed that hazard ratio for in-hospital death for every 1,000/µL increase of platelet count was 0.997 (95%CI, 0.995-0.999; p=0.010); the hazard ratio for the hemoglobin level was not significant. Conclusion A low platelet count was clearly related to a poor life prognosis in HIV-negative Japanese adult inpatients with smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis.

HbA1c level cannot predict the treatment outcome of smear-positive non-multi-drug-resistant HIV-negative pulmonary tuberculosis inpatients.

We conducted a single-center retrospective cohort study to evaluate whether the HbA1c level on admission could predict the in-hospital treatment outcome of smear-positive non-multi-drug-resistant HIV-negative culture-proven pulmonary tuberculosis inpatients. Our standard regimens under the direct observation were HRZE or HRE for the first two months followed by combination therapy with isoniazid and rifampicin. Our cohort consisted of consecutive 239 patients consisted of 147 men and 92 women with a median age of 73 years. The HbA1c level of patients whose HbA1c was above 7.0% on admission showed clear declining trends after admission. HbA1c on admission had no Spearman's rank correlation with time to discharge alive (r = 0.17) and time to becoming non-infective (r = 0.17). By Kaplan-Meier curves and a log-rank trend test, HbA1c quartile subgroups showed no association with times to discharge alive (p = 0.431), becoming non-infective (p = 0.113), and in-hospital death (p = 0.427). Based on multi-variate Cox analysis, HbA1c on admission had no significant impact on time to discharge alive (hazard ratio = 1.03, 95% CI 0.89-1.20, p = 0.659), becoming non-infective (hazard ratio = 0.93, 95% CI 0.80-1.06, p = 0.277), and in-hospital death (hazard ratio = 0.68, 0.43-1.07, p = 0.097). In conclusion, the HbA1c level on admission did not seem to affect in-hospital tuberculosis treatment outcomes in Japanese cohort.

Factors for Predicting Outcomes among Non-HIV Patients with Pulmonary Tuberculosis.

Objective Onodera's Prognostic Nutritional Index (PNI), determined as "10× albumin (g/dL) + 0.005× lymphocyte count (/µL)," was originally designed to determine the risk of complications following gastrointestinal surgery. This single-center, retrospective observational study was designed to investigate whether or not the PNI can predict the treatment outcome. Methods We consecutively reviewed HIV-negative pulmonary tuberculosis adults in an isolation ward. Most patients were being treated with standard three- or four-drug regimens. Patients were discharged after consecutive negative smears/cultures were confirmed. The risk of all-cause death was assessed using a multivariable Cox proportional hazard model and a log-rank trend test. Results During the observation period, we observed 371 consecutive patients with a median age of 72 (interquartile range [IQR]: 54-82) years. In our cohort, 295 (79.5%) patients were discharged alive, and 76 (20.5%) died in-hospital. Patients who died in-hospital had a lower PNI [median 21.2 (IQR: 18.5-25.9)] than those who were discharged alive [median 35.1 (IQR: 28.0-43.3); p<0.001]. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.87. After dividing the patients based on the baseline PNI quartile, those patients with a lower PNI showed a poorer survival than those with a higher PNI (log-rank trend p<0.001). After adjusting for other baseline variables, the baseline PNI was still associated with in-hospital death with a hazard ratio of 0.86 (95% confidence interval: 0.82-0.91, p<0.001). Conclusion Our results showed that a low PNI was clearly related to a poor survival prognosis in smear-positive HIV-negative pulmonary tuberculosis inpatients.

Diagnostic test accuracy of anti-glycopeptidolipid-core IgA antibodies for Mycobacterium avium complex pulmonary disease: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Currently, an anti-glycopeptidolipid (GPL)-core IgA antibody assay kit for diagnosing Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) is commercially available. We conducted this systematic review and meta-analysis to reveal the precise diagnostic accuracy of anti-GPL-core IgA antibodies for MAC pulmonary disease (MAC-PD). We systematically searched reports that could provide data for both sensitivity and specificity by anti-GPL-core IgA antibody for clinically diagnosed MAC-PD. Diagnostic test accuracy was estimated using the bivariate model. Of the 257 articles that we had found through primary search, we finally included 16 reports consisted of 1098 reference positive subjects and 2270 reference negative subjects. The diagnostic odds ratio was 24.8 (95% CI 11.6-52.8, I(2) = 5.5%) and the area under the hierarchical summary receiver operating characteristic curves was 0.873 (95% CI 0.837-0.913). With a cutoff value of 0.7 U/mL, the summary estimates of sensitivity and specificity were 0.696 (95% CI 0.621-0.761) and 0.906 (95% CI 0.836-0.951), respectively. The positive and negative likelihood ratios were 7.4 (95% CI 4.1-13.8) and 0.34 (95% CI 0.26-0.43), respectively. The demanding clinical diagnostic criteria may be a cause of false positive of the index test. The index test had good overall diagnostic accuracy and was useful to ruling in MAC-PD with the cutoff value.

Diagnostic test accuracy of loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay for Mycobacterium tuberculosis: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Diagnostic test accuracy of the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay for culture proven tuberculosis is unclear. We searched electronic databases for both cohort and case-control studies that provided data to calculate sensitivity and specificity. The index test was any LAMP assay including both commercialized kits and in-house assays. Culture-proven M. tuberculosis was considered a positive reference test. We included 26 studies on 9330 sputum samples and one study on 315 extra-pulmonary specimens. For sputum samples, 26 studies yielded the summary estimates of sensitivity of 89.6% (95% CI 85.6-92.6%), specificity of 94.0% (95% CI 91.0-96.1%), and a diagnostic odds ratio of 145 (95% CI 93-226). Nine studies focusing on Loopamp MTBC yielded the summary estimates of sensitivity of 80.9% (95% CI 76.0-85.1%) and specificity of 96.5% (95% CI 94.7-97.7%). Loopamp MTBC had higher sensitivity and lower specificity for smear-positive sputa compared to smear-negative sputa. In-house assays showed higher sensitivity and lower specificity compared to Loopamp MTBC. LAMP promises to be a useful test for the diagnosis of TB, however there is still need to improve the assay to make it simpler, cheaper and more efficient to make it competitive against other PCR methods already available.

Digital PCR assay detection of circulating Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNA in pulmonary tuberculosis patient plasma.

Nucleic acid amplification tests are a major diagnostic tool for pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB). Recently, digital PCR (dPCR) assay has improved sensitivity for the detection of small copy numbers of target molecules. The aim of this study is to explore the utility of dPCR for detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) DNA in PTB patient plasma. Total DNA was purified from plasma samples of newly diagnosed sputum smear-positive PTB patients. Copy numbers of MTB-specific genes in the samples were quantified with dPCR assays targeted for IS6110 or gyrB. A total of 33 PTB patients were enrolled. Significant differences between PTB patients and controls were observed in copy numbers of both targets: IS6110 mean ± SD, 144.8 ± 538.3 vs 0.44 ± 0.49 (copies/20 µL, p = 0.004; Mann-Whitney U test) and gyrB mean ± SD, 359.0 ± 2116 vs 0.07 ± 0.28 (copies/20 µL, p = 0.011; Mann-Whitney U test), respectively. This test had sensitivities of 65% or 29% and a specificity of 93% or 100% with the IS6110-targeted or gyrB-targeted assays, respectively. A dPCR assay successfully detected MTB DNA in PTB patient plasma. This minimally invasive and accurate method has potential to become an alternative diagnostic option.

Amrubicin for relapsed small-cell lung cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis of 803 patients.

Currently, amrubicin is permitted for relapsed small-cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) only in Japan. The efficacy and adverse effects of amrubicin as reported by previous studies varied greatly. The inclusion criterion was a prospective study that was able to provide data for efficacy and safety by the AMR single agent regimen as second-line chemotherapy for a patient with SCLC. Binary data were meta-analyzed with the random-model generic inverse variance method. We included nine articles consisted of 803 patients. The pooled three-, six-, and nine-month progression-free survival were 63% (95% CI 57-69%, I(2) = 53%), 28% (95% CI 21-35%, I(2) = 71%), and 10% (95% CI 6-14%, I(2) = 41%), respectively. The pooled six-, 12-, and 18-month overall survival were 69% (95% CI 61-78%, I(2) = 83%), 36% (95% CI 28-44%, I(2) = 80%), and 15% (95% CI 8-21%, I(2) = 81%), respectively. Amrubicin seemed much more beneficial for Japanese patients. However, compared to the efficacy of topotecan presented in a previous meta-analysis, amrubicin may be a better treatment option than topotecan for both Japanese and Euro-American. Adverse effects by amrubicin were almost exclusively observed to be hematological. Notably, grade III/IV neutropenia incidence was 70% and febrile neutropenia incidence was 12%.

An Autopsy Case Report of Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma with Deciduoid Features.

Deciduoid mesothelioma is a rare variant of epithelioid mesothelioma. We experienced the case of a 73-year-old man with asbestos exposure who was diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma with deciduoid features. He received chemotherapy containing six cycles of cisplatin and pemetrexed and survived for twenty-five months after the diagnosis. At autopsy, the final diagnosis was biphasic pleural mesothelioma. Cells with deciduoid features had mostly disappeared, and spindle cells markedly proliferated. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first autopsy case of malignant pleural mesothelioma with deciduoid features that exhibited a response to chemotherapy.

Sensitivity and specificity of Cobas TaqMan MTB real-time polymerase chain reaction for culture-proven Mycobacterium tuberculosis: meta-analysis of 26999 specimens from 17 Studies.

Since 2010, studies on the diagnostic accuracy of COBAS TaqMan MTB (CTM) have been frequently reported with an unignorable discrepancy. The key inclusion criterion for this systematic review was original studies that could provide sufficient data for calculating the sensitivity and the specificity of CTM for M tuberculosis (TB) or M tuberculosis complex. The reference test was Mycobacterium culture. We used bivariate model for meta-analyses. Of the 201 candidate articles, we finally identified 17 eligible articles.Concerning the respiratory specimens, 1900 culture positive specimens and 20983 culture negative specimens from 15 studies were assessed. This provided the summary estimate sensitivity of 0.808 (95% CI 0.758-0.850) and the summary estimate specificity of 0.990 (95% CI 0.981-0.994). The area under curve was 0.956. The diagnostic odds ratio was 459 (95% CI 261-805, I(2) 26%). For the smear positive respiratory specimens, the sensitivity was 0.952 (95% CI 0.926-0.969) and the specificity was 0.916 (95% CI 0.797-0.968). For the smear negative respiratory specimens, the sensitivity and the specificity were 0.600 (95% CI 0.459-0.726) and 0.989 (95% CI 0.981-0.993), respectively. The diagnostic accuracy was poorer for the non-respiratory specimens, than for the respiratory specimens, but was acceptable. We believe that the information obtained from this study will aid physicians' decision making.

Topotecan for Relapsed Small-cell Lung Cancer: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of 1347 Patients.

Topotecan is the most reliable chemotherapy regimen for relapsed small-cell lung carcinoma (SCLC). The efficacy and adverse effects of topotecan as reported by previous studies varied greatly. The inclusion criterion was a prospective study that was able to provide data for 6-month over-all survival (OS) rate, 1-year OS rate, objective responses, and/or adverse effects of single agent topotecan as a second line chemotherapy for SCLC, written in English language as a full article. Any topotecan regimen were allowed. Binary data were meta-analyzed with the random-model generic inverse variance method. We included 14 articles consisted of 1347 patients. Pooled values were estimated as follows. Six-month OS rate: 37% (95% CI: 28-46%). One-year OS rate: 9% (95% CI: 5-13%). Response rate: 5% (95% CI: 1-8%). Six-month OS rate: 57% (95% CI: 50-64%). One-year OS rate: 27% (95% CI: 22-32%). Response rate: 17% (95% CI: 11-23%). Grade III/IV neutropenia 69% (95% CI: 58-80%). Grade III/IV thrombopenia 41% (95% CI: 34-48%). Grade III/IV anemia 24% (95% CI: 17-30%). Non-hematorogical events were rare. Chemotherapy-related death 2% (95% CI: 1-3%). In conclusion, Topotecan provided a possibly promising outcome for sensitive-relapse SCLC and poor outcome for refractory relapse SCLC. Adverse events were mainly hematological.