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The natural five‐year course in bronchial carcinoma. Epidemiologic results
Author(s) -
Nõu Enn
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
cancer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.052
H-Index - 304
eISSN - 1097-0142
pISSN - 0008-543X
DOI - 10.1002/1097-0142(19840515)53:10<2211::aid-cncr2820531035>3.0.co;2-u
Subject(s) - medicine , adenocarcinoma , carcinoma , autopsy , survival rate , small cell carcinoma , disease , survival analysis , surgery , pathology , cancer
A series of 273 unselected patients with bronchial carcinoma, comprising a total prospective 5‐year study from a Swedish county with an observed 5‐year survival of 7.0%, is presented. The autopsy rate in deceased patients was 94%. All diagnoses were histologically or cytologically verified. The 5‐year survival rates for squamous cell carcinoma, small cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, and large cell carcinoma were 7.5%, 0%, 11.7%, and 3.8%, respectively. In 73% of all survivors, and in all survivors of adenocarcinoma, the disease was discovered by accident. It is concluded that the intensified search for bronchial carcinoma on chest x‐rays taken because of suspicion of other diseases may have contributed to the observed survival gains as compared with other studies. The observed “real” 5‐year survival rate, with inclusion, as “survivors,” of patients dying of other diseases without remaining bronchial carcinoma at autopsy was 8.8%. The corresponding Kaplan‐Meier product limit estimated 5‐year survival was 7.7%. The study is considered to reflect as well as possible the natural 5‐year course of the disease and the results cannot be repeated because of the new therapeutic possibilities introduced during the last years.