JENKINTOWN, PA — The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), an alliance of nineteen of the world’s leading cancer centers, announces that the NCCN Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Guideline has recently been updated to broaden the options for treatment of advanced disease. NCCN’s panel of oncology experts added pemetrexed (Alimta®, Eli Lilly and Company) as an option for second-line therapy for lung cancer. The panel indicated that it has been shown to be equivalent to docetaxel (Taxotere®, Sanofi-Aventis) in efficacy but with less toxicity. The expert panel also added a recommendation for single agent erlotinib (Tarceva™, Genentech) for patients with advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer after failure of at least one prior chemotherapy regimen. Concurrent chemoradiation therapy was added as a primary treatment option for patients with unresectable stage IIIB disease who do not have effusions. Carboplatin (Paraplatin®, Bristol-Myers Squibb Oncology) in combination with paclitaxel (Taxol®, Bristol-Myers Squibb Oncology) was also added as an alternate regimen to existing recommendations for the cisplatin (Platinol®, Bristol-Myers Squibb Oncology) based combination as adjuvant chemotherapy.
“NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology™ are widely recognized as the standard for clinical policy in the oncology community. Additionally, they are being used increasingly by insurance and managed care companies to help establish coverage policy,” said William T. McGivney, Ph.D., CEO of the NCCN. “As such, NCCN recognizes its responsibility to provide up-to-date information to inform decision-making. Thus, the NCCN Guidelines process is an ongoing, continual process.”
NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology™ are available free of charge on CD-ROM. These can be ordered from NCCN by calling 215-690-0300. The most up-to-date versions of the guidelines can be found at www.nccn.org.
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), an alliance of 19 of the world’s leading cancer centers, is dedicated to improving the quality and effectiveness of care provided to cancer patients. Through the leadership and expertise of clinical professionals at NCCN member institutions, NCCN develops resources that present valuable information to the numerous stakeholders in the health care delivery system. As the arbiter of high-quality cancer care, NCCN promotes the importance of continuous quality improvement and recognizes the significance of creating clinical practice guidelines appropriate for use by patients, clinicians, and other health care decision-makers. The primary goal of all NCCN initiatives is to improve the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of oncology practice so patients can live better lives. NCCN programs include: Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology™, Drugs & Biologics Compendium™, Treatment Guidelines for Patients, the Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (JNCCN), Leukemia Resource Line, educational conferences and symposia for clinicians, Oncology Outcomes Project, Clinical Trials Network, Cancer Case Manager™, and collaborations with managed care organizations.