The Charlson Comorbidity Index plus three comorbidity scales were evaluated for survival after radiochemotherapy of limited stage SCLC. For the Charlson Comorbidity Index, 2-4 points were compared to 5-8 points. For the Age-Comorbidity Score, 2-6 points were compared to 7-10 points. For the Medical Research Council (MRC) Breathlessness Scale, grades 0-2 were compared to grades 3-5. For the Simplified Comorbidity Score, 0-5 points were compared to 6-11 and 12-17 points. Charlson Comorbidity Index (p = 0.022) and MRC Breathlessness Scale (p < 0.001) showed significant associations with survival, the Age-Comorbidity Score a trend (p = 0.06). For the Simplified Comorbidity Score, no significant correlation was found (p = 0.54). Absolute differences in survival ≥20 % were observed for the MRC Breathlessness Scale at 1, 2, and 3 years, for the Charlson Comorbidity Index at 1 year, and for the Age-Comorbidity Score at 2 years. Thus, particularly the MRC Breathlessness Scale can contribute to personalization of the treatment of SCLC.
Keywords: Charlson Comorbidity Index; MRC Breathlessness Scale; Radiochemotherapy; Small cell lung cancer; Survival prognosis.