Extrapulmonary small-cell carcinoma. A review of the literature with emphasis on therapy and outcome.

  • 1 November 1987
    • journal article
    • case report
    • Vol. 66  (6) , 457-71
Abstract
We report 18 patients with extrapulmonary small-cell carcinoma, which we regard as a distinct clinicopathologic entity. The natural history of this disease in some sites appears to differ from that of small-cell lung cancer. One patient with small-cell carcinoma of the esophagus was treated with combination chemotherapy and survived for 1 year. Another patient had ectopic adrenocorticotropic hormone production with small-cell carcinoma of the rectum. Two patients with small-cell bladder carcinoma are also reported in this series. Another patient with small-cell carcinoma in a cervical lymph node metastasis has survived more than 7 years after receiving radiation as the only modality of therapy. This case further substantiates the observations of others that extrapulmonary small-cell carcinoma may pursue an indolent course. Furthermore, in certain sites, local modalities of therapy may result in long-term survival or cure. This is particularly true for small-cell neoplasms of the head and neck region. An association between smoking and extrapulmonary small-cell carcinoma is postulated. The therapy and outcome of this disease is also discussed, with particular emphasis on the effectiveness of combined strategies of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: