Each year an estimated 171,500 Americans will be diagnosed with lung cancer, and approximately 160,000 people will die of the disease. Deaths from lung cancer account for 28 percent of all cancer deaths. Standard treatment regimens for this patient population have shown no evidence of survival improvement. BSC refers to measures aimed at maintaining patient comfort, including nutritional support and control of symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, pain and shortness of breath.
Microtubules assemble and disassemble during a cell cycle.
Taxotere promotes their assembly and blocks their disassembly, thereby preventing cancer cells from dividing and resulting in cancer cell death. Taxotere was first approved in the US in 1996 for the treatment of advanced breast cancer after failure of anthracycline-based therapy. Taxotere is now approved in more than 80 countries, including the US and the European Union, for the treatment of advanced breast cancer after failure of prior chemotherapy. A premedication regimen with corticosteroids is recommended in order to prevent or reduce hypersensitivity and fluid retention. Taxotere is generally not appropriate therapy for patients with liver impairment.