The incidence of second primary tumors in long-term survivors of small-cell lung cancer.

PURPOSE AND METHODS

A review of 446 patients who were enrolled consecutively in small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) protocols was performed to identify in long-term survivors the frequency of new primary tumors and their clinical impact.

RESULTS

Forty-seven patients (10.5%) were identified to be free of disease at 2 years. Second primary tumors (SPTs) were diagnosed in 14 patients. The overall risk for developing an SPT was 10.3% per person-year. Actuarial risk at 8 years was 50.3% for an SPT.

CONCLUSIONS

In this review, SCLC showed one of the highest incidences of SPTs reported in aerodigestive tract malignancies. A long-term survivor was more likely to have an SPT than a relapse of SCLC. Consequently, the odds of death from an SPT compared with that from a relapse increased sharply from 1:13 within 4 years from diagnosis to 8:1 afterwards. Long-term survivors of SCLC would be excellent candidates for chemoprevention trials.