BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: A survey was carried out of peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) in lung cancer. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted of all lung cancer patients with malignant ascites diagnosed between 1990 and 2005 at a general hospital in Taiwan. RESULTS: There were 30 lung cancer patients with documented PC. The most frequent abdominal symptom was abdominal distension. The most common histological type of lung cancer with PC was adenocarcinoma. Eighty per cent of the patients developed malignant pleural effusions before the diagnosis of PC. The median survival after diagnosis of PC was 15 days. Two adenocarcinoma patients with PC benefited from treatment with gefitinib. CONCLUSIONS: Further study is warranted to investigate the use of gefitinib in treatment of patients with lung adenocarcinoma and PC.
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: A survey was carried out of peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) in lung cancer. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted of all lung cancerpatients with malignant ascites diagnosed between 1990 and 2005 at a general hospital in Taiwan. RESULTS: There were 30 lung cancerpatients with documented PC. The most frequent abdominal symptom was abdominal distension. The most common histological type of lung cancer with PC was adenocarcinoma. Eighty per cent of the patients developed malignant pleural effusions before the diagnosis of PC. The median survival after diagnosis of PC was 15 days. Two adenocarcinomapatients with PC benefited from treatment with gefitinib. CONCLUSIONS: Further study is warranted to investigate the use of gefitinib in treatment of patients with lung adenocarcinoma and PC.