Surgical management of bronchopulmonary carcinoids: A single center experience.

INTRODUCTION: Bronchopulmonary carcinoids are uncommon tumors with relatively indolent biological behavior but a distinct malignant potential. Surgery is the mainstay of treatment. Our aim was to study preoperative characteristics, surgical approaches, and outcome in patients with bronchopulmonary carcinoid tumors. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This retrospective study was done in the Department of Surgical Oncology of a Tertiary Teaching Hospital of North India. The case records of all the patients who underwent surgical treatment for lung neoplasms and were diagnosed to have bronchopulmonary carcinoids were reviewed. Details concerning the clinical presentation, preoperative therapy, operative procedure, postoperative complications, and outcome were retrieved from the case records. RESULTS: Sixteen patients who underwent surgical treatment were found to have bronchopulmonary carcinoids on histopathological examination. The median age of the patients was 34 years (range 18-62 years). There were 11 men and five women. All patients were symptomatic, and the median duration of symptoms was 12 months (range 6-72 months) before presentation. Six patients had received antitubercular treatment before presentation, and one patient had been treated with chemotherapy due to misdiagnosis. Surgical procedures included six pneumonectomies (one with carinoplasty), four bilobectomies, three lobectomies, and three bronchoplastic procedures (two with lobectomy and one with bilobectomy). There was no postoperative mortality; three patients had morbidity in the form of lobar collapse, prolonged pleural collection, and surgical site infection. With a median follow-up time of 11 months (range 2-85 months), all the 16 patients are alive and disease-free. CONCLUSIONS: Delayed presentation and misdiagnosis of bronchial carcinoid are major concerns in North India. Adequate surgical resection can be performed without undue morbidity and is associated with good long-term results.

Pelvic mature cystic teratoma with neuroendocrine carcinoma: report of a rare association and review of literature.

Extra-gonadal malignant transformation of teratoma is rare and there are only a few reports available citing malignancy arising in the non-germ cell components. We hereby report a case of a 35-year-old female, who presented with lower backache with a radiologically identifiable mass lesion in the pre-sacral region. Clinical and radiological findings suggested the possibility of a cystic teratoma. Histopathological examination and relevant immunohistochemical tests detected a mature cystic teratoma with features of a grade 2 neuroendocrine tumor in it. Like the index case, most of the previously reported cases of teratoma with malignant transformation of the somatic components were found in extra-gonadal site. This case is being reported to emphasize that any extra-gonadal mass in reproductive age group, even if it appears radiologically and per-operatively benign, must be subjected to histopathological examination to rule out possibility of malignant transformation of the germ cell or non-germ cell components.