Clinical Observation of Lung Pleomorphic Carcinoma and Review of Literatures (Report of 5 Cases)

[Objective] To retrospectively evaluate the clinical feature of pleomorphic carcinoma and analyze prognosis-related factors. [Methods] 5 patients (4 men, 1 woman; mean age 53.2 years; ranging 36~69 years) with pleomorphic carcinoma treated from Dec 2000 to Nov 2005 were collected and studied clinicopathologically. [Results] Most tumors were located in the right lung. Biopsies before operation were made in 4 patients, none got right pathologic result. All patients underwent surgical resection, including pneumonectomy lobectomy (2 cases) and bilobectomy (1 case). Postoperative histological results confirm the diagnosis of pleomorphic carcinoma. Metastases into lymph node were noticed in 2 cases. These patients were as follows: ⅠB stage (2 cases), stage ⅡB (2 cases), stage ⅢA (1 case). Follow-up information was obtained in all 5 cases ranging 1~22 months, all patients were still alive at last follow-up. [Conclusions] Pleomorphic carcinoma spreads mainly through local invasion. Preoperative fine needle biopsies are insufficient for pathologic diagnosis. Smoking may be one of the causative factors for this tumor. Extensive resection is the best treatment for this disease, good prognosis may be expected.