Clinical features and survival expectancy
Siegel R, et al. Ca Cancer J Clin 2019;69:7-34
Around only 15% of all lung cancer cases are diagnosed at an early stage, with a 5-year survival rate >50%.
In a large percentage of cases, lung cancer is diagnosed at an advanced stage with distant metastases and a 5-year survival rate of about 5%.
The 5-year survival rate for all lung cancer stages combined is about 18%.
Dela Cruz CS, et al. Clin Chest Med 2011;32:605-644
Lung cancer in both sexes is predominantly diagnosed in the elderly population (median age at diagnosis is 71 years).
Compared with men, women are less likely to have a smoking history, are generally younger at the time of diagnosis, and have a better survival expectancy at any stage, independent of the therapeutic approach.
Lung adenocarcinoma is the most common histological subtype among women.
Adenocarcinoma accounts for 38.5% of all lung cancer cases, while squamous cell carcinoma and large cell carcinoma account for 20.0% and 2.9%, respectively.
Over the past decades, adenocarcinoma incidence has progressively increased, and it has now replaced squamous cell carcinoma as the most prevalent non-small cell lung cancer histotype.
Dela Cruz CS, et al. Clin Chest Med 2011;32:605-644
Lung adenocarcinoma is also the most represented histotype among never-smokers.
Revision Questions
- What is the proportion of patients with lung cancer diagnosed at early stage of disease?
- Is there a correlation between a clinical characteristic (such as female gender or smoking attitude) and one specific histotype?
- Is the subtype histology prevalence the same compared with 30 years ago?
