[Long-term survival in patient with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and adenocarcinoma of the lung].

BACKGROUND

Lung cancer associated with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is unusual. Literature review between 1984 and 1993 showed less than 100 published cases of this association. From those cases it appears that the neoplasia is more aggressive and survival after diagnosis is less than 12 months. A case is reported of an HIV positive man with adenocarcinoma of the lung that survived 28 months after diagnosis, the longest published survival in such case described in the medical literature.

CASE REPORT

A 57-year old Caucasian homosexual male and heavy smoker was diagnosed as having a bronchogenic carcinoma and underwent right upper lobectomy, chemotherapy, thoracic surgery for carcinoma recurrence and radiotherapy. He remained in good condition with reasonable life quality and died for reasons unrelated either to his tumor or the antineoplastic treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

Diagnostic delay and the immuno-deficiency are the reasons for the dismal prognosis of lung cancer in AIDS patients. Aggressive treatment of the neoplastic disease should be done in such cases, as reasonable prolonged survival is possible, as shown by our report.