Small cell lung cancer: updates and new concepts Preface

The standard of care for both limited stage and extensive stage SCLC has seen little change since the introduction of platinum/etoposide doublet therapy in the mid-1980s (1,2). There have been advances in the clinic since then, including the approval of topotecan for recurrent SCLC and the application of new radiation therapy strategies, but despite these advances the outlook for patients afflicted with SCLC remains dismal (3-8). The frequent and rapid incidence of acquired resistance to these therapies (6) and the inability to detect early-stage disease by radiographic approaches (9-11) has bedeviled progress in this deadly disease.