Typical pulmonary carcinoid tumors: presentation and outcome of 24 cases

The aim of the study was to determine the presenting clinical-radiological features and outcomes of typical pulmonary carcinoid tumors in our center.

The medical records of 24 patients with typical pulmonary carcinoid tumor diagnosed between January 1995 and December 2003 were retrospectively reviewed. Follow-up information on patients was obtained from direct patient contact in February 2004.

There were 17 female and 7 male patients with a mean age of 40.3 years (range: 17-69 years). Sixteen patients (66.7%) were nonsmokers. The most frequent presenting symptom was cough, followed by hemoptysis. Twenty-three patients had an abnormal chest X-ray, showing atelectasis in seven. Bronchoscopy revealed mass lesion in all cases. In 13 cases, tumor was located in the lobar bronchi. Diagnosis of carcinoid tumor was established with bronchoscopy in 19 patients and with thoracotomy in five cases. While surgery was the treatment modality in 23 patients, one patient refused treatment. Lobectomy was performed in 15 cases and six of them were sleeve lobectomy. One patient died two days after operation due to ischemic heart disease, two were lost to follow-up, and 21 patients were still alive. Survival for the 21 patients was between 5 and 96 months. Eight patients had survival of more than five years.

Our data suggest that typical pulmonary carcinoids are different from major lung cancer types with respect to sex, age predilection, and smoking history. Surgery is the treatment of choice for pulmonary carcinoid tumors. These patients had excellent prognosis after surgical treatment.