Patients were staged according to the TNM system.
As part of routine clinical evaluation in our unit,
staging was done using thorax, abdomen, and cranial
tomography and bone scanning. Routine blood tests
(biochemistry and complete blood counts) were done
in all cases before each cycle of chemotherapy. In the
treatment of patients, platinum-based treatment
regimes (docetaxel, vinorelbine, or gemcitabine)
were used every 3 weeks. Evaluation of treatment
responses was carried out after three cycles of chemotherapy
using Response Evaluation Criteria In
Solid Tumors (RECIST) criteria (7).