Prognostic factors for pulmonary large-cell neuroendocrine carcinoma: a competing-risks analysis

Abstract

Background Pulmonary large-cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC) is a rare and highly invasive subtype of lung cancer that accounts for fewer than 3% of cases. The prognostic factors for pulmonary LCNEC are unclear in the literature. Methods Patients diagnosed with pulmonary LCNEC between 2004 and 2015 were identified in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. The CumIncidence function was used for the univariate analysis. Multivariate analysis was performed using Cox regression analysis, subdistribution hazard function analysis, and cause-specific hazard function analysis. Results We finally screened 1246 patients diagnosed with pulmonary LCNEC, among whom 796 died of LCNEC and 141 died from other causes. The univariate analysis showed that sex, primary site, laterality, American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) stage, T stage, N stage, M stage, lymph-node status, surgery, and chemotherapy were significant prognostic factors for pulmonary LCNEC (P<0.05). The multivariate analysis demonstrated that sex, AJCC stage, TNM stage T4, TNM stage N3, lymph-node status, surgery, and chemotherapy were independent risk factors for the prognosis (P<0.05). Conclusion We have conducted a competing-risks analysis of patients with pulmonary LCNEC in the SEER database. The results showed that sex, AJCC stage, TNM stage T4, TNM stage N3, lymph-node status, surgery, and chemotherapy are independent prognostic factors for pulmonary LCNEC patients. The reported data represent reference information that can be used for accurate assessments of the prognosis of pulmonary LCNEC patients.