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Table 4 Eligibility criteria and screening matrix

From: Study protocol: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials in first-line treatment of squamous non-small cell lung cancer

Eligibility criteria

Patients

Male or female patients with histologically or cytologicallyconfirmed squamous NSCLC

 

Study participants must have not received chemotherapy treatment prior to first-line chemotherapy for NSCLC at the time of randomization in the study

Interventions

The study assesses a chemotherapy treatment in each of the study arms

 

No limits are placed on the type of chemotherapy used

Outcomes

One or more of the following outcomes must be quantitatively reported in the publication: overall survival, progression-free survival, toxicity, or quality of life

 

At least one of the required outcome variables must be reported separately for patients with advanced or metastatic (stage III/IV) NSCLC that is of squamous histology

Study design

RCTs

Time frame

1995 to present

Ineligibility criteria

Interventions

Not first-line treatment with first-line defined as patients with no prior exposure to chemotherapy

 

Radiation therapy in the absence of concurrent chemotherapy in any treatment group

Study design

Review articles, news, editorials, commentaries

Time frame

Publication date prior to 1995

Matrix for patients with "squamous histology"

Squamous inclusion obvious in abstract?

Squamous results obvious in abstract?

Inclusion

Comments

Yes

Yes

Yes

 

No

Yes

Yes

 

Yes

No

Yes/No

Need full text to determine the inclusion

No

No

Yes/No

Need full text to determine the inclusion

Only non-squamous inclusion obvious in abstract?

Squamous results obvious in abstract?

Inclusion

Comments

Yes

Yes

Not possible case

 

No

Yes

Yes

 

Yes

No

No

 

No

No

Yes/No

Need full text to determine the inclusion

Abstract mentions just NSCLC as inclusion?

Squamous results obvious in abstract?

Inclusion

Comments

Yes

Yes

Yes

 

No

Yes

Yes/No

This may be multisite cancer study, need full text to determine the inclusion

Yes

No

Yes/No

Need full text to determine the inclusion

No

No

Noise in the search

Need full text to determine the inclusion

Multiple cancers

If mentions lung cancer

Yes/No

Need full text to determine the inclusion

 

If does not mention any specific tumor types

Yes/No

Need full text to determine the inclusion

 

If only mentions breast cancer or other types and does not mention lung cancer

Noise in the search

 

Matrix for "not first-line treatment"

Condition

Line of treatment to be considered

Inclusion

Comments

Naïve NSCLC patients

1st

Yes

 

First- or front-line treatment

1st

Yes

 

Untreated NSCLC patients

1st

Yes

 

Metastatic chemo-naïve NSCLC patients

1st

Yes

 

Chemo-naïve NSCLC patients

1st

Yes

 

Second-line treatment

2nd

No

 

(Rx)-resistant NSCLC patients

2nd

No

 

Recurrent or progressive disease

2nd

No

 

(Rx)-responder/non-responder patients

2nd

No

 

If no clear information on line of treatment

NA

Yes/No

Need full text to determine the inclusion