Comprehensive clinicopathological and prognostic analysis of primary pulmonary lymphoepithelial carcinoma: a retrospective cohort study.
Early-stage pulmonary lymphoepithelial carcinoma after surgery has high 5-year survival
Comprehensive clinicopathological and prognostic analysis of primary pulmonary lymphoepithelial carcinoma: a retrospective cohort study.
Primary pulmonary lymphoepithelial carcinoma (primary pulmonary lymphoepithelial carcinoma) is an extremely rare subtype of lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC).
This study aims to comprehensively characterize clinicopathological and molecular characteristics, evaluate treatment strategies, and identify prognostic factors of primary pulmonary lymphoepithelial carcinoma.
This retrospective study was conducted on 152 pathologically confirmed primary pulmonary lymphoepithelial carcinoma patients in our center between April 2012 and December 2024.
The median age at diagnosis in the PPLELC cohort was 55 years, with a slight female predominance (52.6%) and strong nonsmoking association (75.7%).
All patients (100%) were EBV-encoded RNA (EBV-encoded RNA) -in situ hybridization (ISH) positive.
For locally advanced primary pulmonary lymphoepithelial carcinoma (n = 14), neoadjuvant therapy is a potential strategy with an objective response rate (objective response rate) of 50.0%.
Compared with chemotherapy alone, combination therapies yielded superior outcomes in advanced-stage patients (n = 30).
Primary pulmonary lymphoepithelial carcinoma is a distinct LUSC subtype characterized by an Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) association, a nonsmoking phenotype, epithelial differentiation, few driver mutations, and high PD-L1 expression.
Surgical resection plays a pivotal role in the management of early-stage disease, whereas multimodal therapeutic approaches have considerable potential for advanced-stage cases. TNM stage was the independent prognostic factor for PFS.
These findings provide valuable insights for optimizing management strategies for this rare malignant entity.