Poor prognosis after lung resection for patients with adenosquamous carcinoma of the lung

BACKGROUND: We evaluated the prognosis of adenosquamous carcinoma of the lung after lung resection in comparison with other types of carcinoma. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed charts of patients who underwent lung resection for lung cancer. RESULTS: Surgical outcomes for 30 patients with adenosquamous carcinoma of the lung, who were treated between 1976 and 1998, were compared with the surgical results for 1,219 patients similarly treated for adenocarcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma during the same period. Adenosquamous carcinoma comprised only 2.1% of 1,408 lung cancer cases treated by resection. The overall cumulative 5-year survival rate was only 6.2% for the patients with adenosquamous carcinoma, indicating a significantly poorer prognosis than for adenocarcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma. CONCLUSIONS: The cumulative survival rate for patients with adenosquamous carcinoma in pathologic stages IA to IIB was similar to that of patients with stage IIIA adenocarcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma.