Mitomycin C, vinblastine and cisplatin combination chemotherapy in the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer

Thirty-one patients with previously untreated advanced non-small cell lung cancer were treated with mitomycin C (10 mg/m², day 1), vinblastine (5 mg/m², days 1 and 15), and cisplatin (80 mg/m², day 1). Combination chemotherapy was repeated at 4-week intervals until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. The overall response rate was 52.0%, with a median survival time of 8 months. The median duration of response was 16 weeks (range, 7-49 weeks), and 23% of the patients survived for more than 1 year. Toxicity included moderate myelosuppression, mild nephropathy, and severe nausea and vomiting. This combination therapy of anticancer agents appears to have antitumor activity, but not to have satisfactory therapeutic activity for advanced non-small cell lung cancer.