[Bronchogenic carcinoma in patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection]

The diagnosis of bronchogenic carcinoma (BC) in patients with HIV infection is infrequent. Five cases are described and the existing references reviewed. The incidence, risk factors, clinical manifestations, histology, age of onset, diagnosis and survival in HIV positive patients with BC were analyzed. The clinical histories of 2,586 patients with HIV infection seen in the authors' center were reviewed. Five cases in whom BC was detected were found. Sixty-nine cases published in the international literature were collected in a reference search by the MEDLINE system between 1982-1994. The patients with BC and HIV infection have an early age of presentation (mean age: 42 years) and a lower survival with respect to those without infection. No differences were observed with regard to the smoking habit, procedures for achieving diagnosis or clinical manifestation. The predominant histologic subtype was adenocarcinoma. A higher incidence of BC was observed in patients with HIV infection with respect to the control groups on elimination of the bias for age and risk factors for BC. Given its low incidence, BC should be considered in the differential diagnosis of pulmonary disease in patients with HIV infection in cases presenting a history of smoking, once the most common opportunistic infections have been discarded.