Docetaxel and Gemcitabine in Treating Patients With Stage IIIB or Stage IV Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining more than one drug may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Randomized phase II trial to compare the effectiveness of two regimens of docetaxel plus gemcitabine in treating patients who have stage IIIB or stage IV non-small cell lung cancer.

OBJECTIVES: I. Evaluate the response rate of patients with stage IIIB or IV nonsmall cell lung cancer to different schedules of docetaxel and gemcitabine therapy. II. Evaluate the toxicity of this treatment in these patients. III. Describe the quality of life parameters of patients receiving this combination therapy. IV. Determine the survival rate of these patients. OUTLINE: This is a randomized study. Patients are stratified by disease (stage IIIB vs stage IV) and performance status (0 vs 1). Patients are randomized to one of two treatment arms (Arm I now closed). Arm I: Patients receive docetaxel IV over 1 hour on day 1 followed by gemcitabine IV over 30 minutes on days 1, 8, and 15. (closed as of 8/31/1999) Arm II: Patients receive docetaxel IV over 1 hour and gemcitabine IV over 30 minutes on days 1 and 15. Arm III: Patients receive docetaxel IV on day 1 and gemcitabine IV on days 1, 8, and 15. Patients continue treatment every 28 days for a maximum of 6 courses in the absence of unacceptable toxicity or disease progression. Patients with either stable disease or complete/partial response who discontinue treatment after 4-6 courses may be eligible for NCCTG-97-24-51. Quality of life is assessed before treatment and before each course of therapy. Patients are followed every 3 months for 1 year, then every 3 months for 5 years. PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 19-53 patients will be accrued for this study within 6-18 months.