The long term survival of patients with visceral carcinoma

Fourteen year survival data following resection for 1,123 men with squamous cell carcinoma of the lung, 246 with adenocarcinoma of the lung, 1,585 with adenocarcinoma of the colon and rectum, 500 with adenocarcinoma of the stomach and 309 with carcinoma of the lung in a particular pulmonary nodule study have been analyzed. The survival curve for each is at least bimodal. Each tumor population has been separated into a high and a low risk group, and the mortalities for each compared with that expected had the patients experienced United States death rates for men of the same race, age and calendar year. Except for adenocarcinoma of the stomach, no population was identified as cured, being defined as a return to a normal survival rate for sex, age and race. Compared with the expected, the relative increase in the risk of dying was not a function of patient age. Although larger tumor size and spread to lymph nodes affected the distribution of patients between risk groups, within each risk group, there was little difference in the mortalities of those having, and those lacking, these findings. The continued increase in the death rate was primarily due to carcinoma of the original organ. Except for patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the lung, no increase above the expected was observed for the development of carcinoma of organs other than the original.