Clinico-pathologic and prognostic studies on lung adenocarcinoma patients under 40 years of age
Chen, T-feng.; Jiang, G-liang.; Fu, X-long.; Wang, L-juan.; Qian, H.; Zhao, S.
Zhonghua Zhong Liu Za Zhi 25(2): 157-159
2003
ISSN/ISBN: 0253-3766 PMID: 12795843 Document Number: 554372
Objective: To study whether the clinico-pothologic characteristics and survival of young lung cancer patients <40 years of age differ from those of lung cancer patients gtoreq40 years of age. Methods: Retrospective analysis was carried out to compare the clinico-pathologic features and survival of 129 young patients (young group) with those of 140 randomly selected older ones (elderly group). Results: The young group, when compared with the older group, had more female (P=0.037), longer mean duration of symptoms (4.7m vs 2.5m, P<0.001), higher misdiagnostic rate (65.1% vs 24.3%, P<0.001) with longer mean duration of misdiagnosis for the misdiagnosed patients (5.6m vs 2.5m, P<0.001), more adenocarcinoma (54.3% vs 42.1%, P<0.001), higher pathologic grade (69.5% vs 36.0%, P<0.001), more advanced-stage diseases at diagnosis (74.4% vs 45.7%, P<0.001), more patients receiving combined-modality treatment (94.6% vs 62.1%, P<0.001) and more distant failures as initial relapse (64.7% vs 50.6%, P=0.02). The median survivals and 5-year survival rates were better in patients with stage I-II disease in the young group than the older group (54m vs 33m and 46.2% vs 25.0%, P=0.049 5), even though the overall median survivals and 5-year survival rates were similar in either group (11m vs 14m and 8.3% vs 11.9%, P=0.288 9). There was no difference in family or smoking history (P=0.227 and 0.171). Conclusion: Younger patients with lung cancer present difference in clinico-pathologic features from the older ones, but the survivals of the two groups are similar. To define younger lung cancer as "the younger type of lung cancer" may have a practical clinical significance.