Facteurs pronostiques et cancers bronchopulmonaires

A prognostic factor could be defined as a variable correlated to an evaluation criteria used for predicting the patient's future (survival, progression-free survival) independently of the applied treatment. Prognostic factors are frequently used as selection and stratification criteria for inclusion in clinical trials, for group comparisons and, eventually for adapting treatment intensity. Their predicting ability dœs not allow using them for an individual prognosis. The principal prognostic factors in lung neoplasms are disease stage and performance status, age, gender and histology being also recognised. This work aims at presenting with criticism an overview of the data related to prognostic factors in lung cancer (conventional, biologic and metabolic prognostic factors) and the main limits of this abundant literature.