Prevalence of In Vitro Extreme Chemotherapy Resistance in Resected Nonsmall-Cell Lung Cancer

Chemotherapy resistance is prevalent among NSCLC clinical cell cultures. This may account for the small survival seen with empiric adjuvant chemotherapy. The use of viable tumor culture for in vitro chemoresistance testing should be considered when formulating a plan of adjuvant therapy for resected NSCLC. Future trials comparing patient survival after tailored versus empiric adjuvant therapy appear justified.