A Case of Pulmonary Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma Responding to Carboplatin and Paclitaxel

Abstract

A 59-year-old man was admitted to our hospital with dyspnea and cough. A large polypoid tumor was observed in the lower trachea and bronchoscopic polypectomy was performed using a snare to relieve symptoms. The tumor was diagnosed as a high grade mucoepidermoid carcinoma mainly by the histology of piecemeal specimens obtained by bronchoscopic resection. The primary lesion involved the trachea and the main bronchus, and there were multiple metastases in the lung. The patient was treated with the combination of carboplatin and paclitaxel. After four cycles of chemotherapy, the tumors were significantly reduced. He remains well without evidence of tumor progression for 25 months. This case suggests that the combination chemotherapy of carboplatin and paclitaxel can be an option for treatment of pulmonary mucoepidermoid carcinoma.

Surgical treatment of mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the lung: 20 years’ experience

“…In a previous report, combination chemotherapy (cisplatin þ vinorelbine or cisplatin þ docetaxel) was administered to patients with high-grade malignancies as adjuvant treatment after surgery. 6 The results indicated that adjuvant chemotherapy may be effective for patients with high-grade malignancies but did not recommend it for patients with low-grade malignancies due to their favorable prognosis. 6 The utility of radiotherapy is still unclear; radiotherapy has previously been reported to be ineffective for mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the lung.…”

“…6 The results indicated that adjuvant chemotherapy may be effective for patients with high-grade malignancies but did not recommend it for patients with low-grade malignancies due to their favorable prognosis. 6 The utility of radiotherapy is still unclear; radiotherapy has previously been reported to be ineffective for mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the lung. 7 Several case reports of pulmonary mucoepidermoid carcinoma exist in the literature, but there are few case series due to the rarity of the disease.…”

Rare cause of lung atelectasis in a young woman

“…Complete surgical resection with curative intent should be the first treatment option in these patients. The evidence to support the effectiveness of chemotherapy or radiotherapy is scarce 2 5 7 11. Combination chemotherapy has been reported to be administered as adjuvant treatment after surgery in patients with high-grade malignancy, and it was shown to be effective.…”

“…The tumour is classified into low and high grade. Low-grade tumours are usually confined to the bronchial wall, while high-grade tumours can extend into the adjacent lung parenchyma 4–6…”

Bronchial Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma Successfully Treated with Radiation Therapy: A Case Report

“…This was effective even in patients without EGFR mutation [14]. In addition, Sonobe et al reported a case that carboplatin plus paclitaxel was used for unresectable pulmonary MEC patient with 25 months disease free survival [27].…”