Survival Outcomes of Local Compared With Systemic First Treatment of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Brain Metastases.

Objective: This retrospective study evaluated the survival advantage of local treatment targeted to brain metastases, relative to systemic therapy, as the first option for brain metastases of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Methods: First reviewed were 291 cases of NSCLC brain metastases from two centers. All patients were at least 18 years old, with histologically confirmed NSCLC, and required and underwent both local (radiotherapy or brain surgery) and systemic treatment (chemotherapy and tyrosine kinase inhibitor [TKI] medication).