Pemetrexed or Docetaxel With or Without Erlotinib in Stage IIIB or Stage IV Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

OBJECTIVES: Primary * To evaluate whether maintenance erlotinib hydrochloride added to standard of care (pemetrexed disodium or docetaxel) chemotherapy in patients with erlotinib hydrochloride-responsive advanced non-small cell lung cancer leads to an improved progression-free survival as compared to standard of care pemetrexed disodium or docetaxel alone. Secondary * To evaluate the effect of maintenance erlotinib hydrochloride on the response rate to standard of care (pemetrexed disodium or docetaxel) therapy in patients with erlotinib hydrochloride-responsive advanced non-small cell lung cancer as compared to standard of care (pemetrexed disodium or docetaxel) alone. * To evaluate whether maintenance erlotinib hydrochloride added to standard of care (pemetrexed disodium or docetaxel) chemotherapy in patients with erlotinib hydrochloride-responsive advanced non-small cell lung cancer leads to an improved overall survival as compared to standard of care (pemetrexed disodium or docetaxel) alone. * To evaluate the effect of maintenance erlotinib hydrochloride on the disease stabilization (complete response \[CR\] + partial response \[PR\] + stable disease \[SD\]) rate to standard of care (pemetrexed disodium or docetaxel) therapy in patients with erlotinib hydrochloride-responsive advanced non-small cell lung cancer as compared to standard of care (pemetrexed disodium or docetaxel) alone. * To evaluate the utility of early positron emission tomography (PET) scanning (baseline versus 1 cycle of protocol therapy) on overall disease assessment and prediction of treatment responsiveness. OUTLINE: This is a multicenter, randomized study. Patients are stratified according to lifetime smoking status (never vs ever) and ECOG performance status (0-1 vs ≥ 2). Patients are randomized to 1 of 2 treatment arms. * Arm I: (standard of care alone): Patients receive pemetrexed disodium intravenously (IV) over 10 minutes OR docetaxel IV over 60 minutes on day 1. Treatment repeats every 21 days for up to 8 courses in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. * Arm II: (standard of care plus erlotinib): Patients receive pemetrexed disodium IV over 10 minutes OR docetaxel IV over 60 minutes on day 1 and erlotinib hydrochloride orally (PO) once daily on days 2-19. Treatment repeats every 21 days for up to 8 courses in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. Patients may continue to receive standard chemotherapy with or without erlotinib hydrochloride in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. After completion of study treatment, patients are followed up every 8 weeks.