Adenosquamous Carcinoma, Lung

Synonyms

Mixed glandular and squamous carcinoma

Definition

An invasive carcinoma showing components of both invasive adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. The lesser component should still comprise at least 10% of the tumor overall. Thus, adenosquamous carcinoma is a diagnosis that can only be made definitively in surgically resected cases where the whole tumor can be examined.

Clinical Features

• Incidence

  Adenosquamous carcinoma of the lung is a relatively rare subtype, although figures for incidence vary widely due, historically, to a range of different diagnostic criteria being used to make the diagnosis. Figures quoted range from 0.4% to 5% of lung carcinomas. Given that it is a diagnosis that may only be confirmed in surgically resected series, the true incidence in all lung cancer patients, the majority of whom never have a surgical resection, could be rather different. As with most other nonsmall cell carcinomas (NSCLC), there is an association with smoking tobacco.

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