Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 1992 Dec;112(6):963-70; discussion 970-1.

An eleven-year experience with adrenocortical carcinoma

Affiliations
  • PMID: 1455321

An eleven-year experience with adrenocortical carcinoma

R F Pommier et al. Surgery. 1992 Dec.

Abstract

Background: Key issues in the treatment of adrenocortical carcinoma are the value of adjuvant therapy, the value of reoperation, and the search for effective chemotherapeutic agents. The present series was reviewed to evaluate these issues.

Methods: We present a retrospective series of 73 patients with adrenocortical carcinoma treated at a single institution.

Results: Twenty patients had carcinomas that were unresectable, and 53 patients underwent complete resections. Ten patients received adjuvant therapy (mitotane, seven patients; radiation, three patients). Forty-five (85%) patients had recurrence, including all who received adjuvant therapy. Mean disease-free intervals for those who did and did not receive adjuvant therapy were equivalent at 2.4 years. Nineteen patients with recurrent disease received chemotherapy, and 26 patients underwent 51 reoperations to resect recurrent and metastatic disease. The overall 5-year survival rate, which was 35%, was 47% for patients with complete resection. Stage and resectability were prognostic factors. Mean survival time for patients with recurrent disease treated medically was 19 months compared with 56 months for patients who underwent reoperation. Mitotane had a 24% partial response rate. Other chemotherapeutic agents were ineffective.

Conclusions: We conclude that an aggressive surgical approach to recurrent and metastatic disease should be adopted and that patients should be resected free of disease whenever possible. Currently no effective chemotherapy exists, and the value of adjuvant therapy remains unproved.

PubMed Disclaimer