Vers une renaissance de la radiothérapie dans les cancers bronchiques non à petites cellules de stade précoce

Surgery is the current standard treatment of early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (stage I and II tumors). Contrary to adjuvant chemotherapy, which was recently demonstrated to decrease systemic tumor recurrences as well as increasing overall survival, postoperative radiotherapy did not benefit from an actualized evaluation including the recent evolutions in radiation concepts and techniques. Available reported data have thus to be cautiously interpreted, taking into consideration that radiotherapy as described in ancient reports has not much left in common with current radiation modalities and techniques. Given the efficacy of chemoradiation in locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer, investigators may take advantage of the ongoing reevaluation of the role of postoperative radiotherapy to consider combinations with chemotherapy a potential therapeutic strategy in this setting. Moreover, technical improvements in radiation delivery, including stereotactic radiotherapy, allow the future development of new indications in early-stage tumors. More than ever, radiotherapy is one of the most promising therapeutic option for lung cancer.