A profile of lung cancer patients in Hyderabad.

One hundred and sixty cases of bronchogenic carcinoma were retrospectively analysed. Male to female ratio was 8.4:1, common age group being 40-60 years. The most common (38%) radiological presentation was mass lesion. The predominant histological cell type was squamous cell carcinoma (67%). Most of the patients presented in an advanced stage of the disease of inoperability. The study underlines the various diagnostic madalities in diagnosing lung cancer and emphasises the need for practising doctors to keep in mind the possibilities of bronchogenic carcinoma in all cases of unresolved pneumonia and mass lesion on chest x-ray especially in high risk patients.