Oat cell carcinoma of the lung:A review of 138 cases

All cases seen during the 11 years from 1956 through 1966 are reviewed. They comprised 10% of the bronchogenic cancer population. Males predominated 19:1. There was no positive correlation with cigarette smoking. In most of the patients symptoms were present less than 3 months before diagnosis. Only four patients (3.0%) had overt hypercoticism. Histologic confirmation was easily obtained; bronchoscopic biopsy was positive in 60% of the cases. Our operability rate (60%) and resectability rate (27%) are almost as high as for epidermoid carcinoma; others have reported much lower rates. There are two 5-year survivors, the only asymptomatic patients in the series. In both, the tumor already had prominent vascular invasion, and one had regional lymph node involvement. The survival rate was 5.4% of the resected patients and 1.4% of the total group.