Pulmonary carcinoid tumours: incidence, histology, and surgical outcome. A population-based study

Background Pulmonary carcinoids (PCs) represent only a minority of all primary pulmonary malignancies but they are the most common type of pulmonary malignancy diagnosed in children and adolescents. In this nationwide study, we analyzed data on all PC tumours in the Icelandic population over a 60-year period and concentrated especially on incidence and patient outcomes. Methods We studied all cases of PCs diagnosed in Iceland in the period 1955‒2015. Histological specimens were re-evaluated and the tumours were staged according to the TNM system (seventh edition). Survival was estimated using the Kaplan–Meier method, with a mean follow-up of 15.7 years. Results Altogether, 88 patients (median age 51.0 years, 65.9% women) were diagnosed with PCs in the study period. The incidence increased from 0.19/100,000/year in the first decade (1955‒1964) to 0.58/100,000/year in the last decade (2005‒2015), with a mean increase of 29.0% per decade of the study period ( p