الفهرس | Only 14 pages are availabe for public view |
Abstract Lung cancer is the second most common cancer in both men and women; it is by far the leading cause of cancer death making up almost 25% of all cancer deaths. Histologically, it is divided into two major types; nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and small cell lung cancer (SCLC) (1). Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for approximately 85% of lung cancer and includes the histological subtypes adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, large cell undifferentiated carcinoma, and mixed histologies, the remaining 10-15% of cases are small cell lung cancer (SCLC) (2). Adenocarcinoma is the most common type of NSCLC and represents around 40% of lung cancers; it arises from alveolar cells located in the smaller airway epithelium. Squamous cell carcinomas represent 25% to 30% of lung cancers; they tend to arise from cells located in the airway epithelium. Large cell cancers account for approximately 5% to 10% of all lung cancers, and the incidence is declining due to newer immunophenotyping techniques, allowing better classification of more poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinomas and adenocarcinomas. These tumors are typically poorly differentiated and composed of large cells with abundant cytoplasm and large nucleoli (3-6). |