There is a growing body of evidence that implicates inflammation as a mechanism of disease progression and reduced survival in patients with advanced cancer. Elevated c-reactive protein levels have been shown to be associated with reduced performance status, specific cancer related symptoms and reduced overall survival. C-reactive protein levels are a surrogate for IL-6 expression. IL-6 is part of an inflammatory signature predicting cancer recurrence. VeriStrat® is a multivariate test which measures protein expression related to a host/tumor interaction mediated by inflammation. The investigators hope to examine the relationship between quality of life outcomes per FACT-L survey and correlate them with changes in c-reactive protein levels and the VeriStrat® status. The hypothesis of this study is that the remarkable survival benefit in the Temel study is mediated by reduced inflammation with improvement of symptom control.
Confirmed diagnosis of stage IV non-small cell lung cancer Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0, 1, or 2 Able to read and respond to questions in English
