[Extrapulmonary small cell carcinoma in 52 patients].

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE: The majority of small cell carcinoma occurs in the lung. Extrapulmonary small cell carcinoma (ESCC) has been recognized as a clinicopathologic entity distinct from small cell carcinoma of the lung. The study was to investigate the clinical characteristics, therapy, and prognosis of ESCC.

METHODS: The medical records, from Jan. 1985 to Dec. 2005, of 53 patients with pathologically proved ESCC were analyzed retrospectively.

RESULTS: Of the 53 patients, 39 were men and 14 were women, with the median age of 53 years (range, 27-76 years). Of the 53 cases of ESCC, 33 (62.3%) were detected in the esophagus, 5 in the cervix, 4 in the larynx, 3 in the pharynx, 2 in the upper sinus, 2 in the rectum and sublingual gland, 1 in the thyroid gland, 1 in the pleura, and 1 in the liver. Forty patients (75.5%) had limited disease (LD) and 13 (24.5%) had extensive disease (ED). Patients with ED mostly received platinum-based chemotherapy, for which the response rate was 69.2%. Patients with LD were treated with a variety of therapeutic modalities: 7 were treated with surgery plus radiochemotherapy, 3 with surgery plus radiotherapy, 18 with surgery plus chemotherapy, 6 with radiotherapy plus chemotherapy, 4 with radiotherapy alone, and 2 with chemotherapy alone. The median survival time (MST) was 20 months for all patients, and the 1-and 3-year survival rates were 41.3% and 31.4%. MST for patients with ED and LD were 15 months and 26 months, respectively, and 1-and 3-year survival rates were 51.1% vs. 14.4%, and 42.5% vs. 0% (P=0.017 ).

CONCLUSIONS: ESCC is identified in various sites, with the most common primary site being the esophagus. Multimodality therapy has become increasingly used for the majority of patients with LD-ESCC. Combination chemotherapy has been a major treatment for patients with ED-ESCC. Generally, the prognosis of LD-ESCC is significantly superior to ED-ESCC.