Carcinoid tumors.

The authors carried out a retrospective study of 32 patients (23 M, 9 F) with carcinoid tumors who were diagnosed and treated at Harlem Hospital Center, New York, from 1967 to 1988. All the patients were black and the commonest sites were the ileum (28.1%), rectosigmoid and rectum (21.9%), and the appendix and lung (15.6% each). Metastasis correlated with site, size, and depth of the primary tumor and occurred in 12 patients (38%), most frequently to the regional lymph nodes and liver. Carcinoid syndrome developed in 12.5% (3 F, 1 M). Surgical resection for cure or palliation was the mainstay of treatment. Overall 5 year survival rate was 66%, and for those with metastases was 0%. The poorer survival rates are probably related to the socioeconomic status of our patient population. The only observed racial difference compared to other series is the preponderance of males, and the disproportionately higher ratio of females with the carcinoid syndrome.