Lung Recipients with Post-Transplant Lung Cancer and Comparison with Other Organ Recipients
Organ Donation and Transplantation, NHS Blood and Transplant, Bristol, United Kingdom
West Midlands Cancer Intelligence Unit, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
Meeting: 2013 American Transplant Congress
Abstract number: B894
The burden and impact of lung cancer among transplant recipients and a comparison between recipients of lung and other organs has been studied in small cohorts with limited follow-up. Here we report the incidence and outcome of lung cancer in lung recipients as compared to recipients of other solid organs from a large national registry data.
The data from the National Transplant Registry was used to link the details of solid organ recipients (1990-2007, excluding those who died within a month of transplantation), with the Cancer Registries to identify all recipients diagnosed with lung cancer after transplantation. Of a total of 33658 recipients, 300 (0.89%) developed lung cancer. The standardised incidence ratio (incidence compared with age-gender-year-matched general population) for lung cancer was significantly higher (p<0.0001) in lung recipients (9.3) compared to other organ recipients (2.2). Among those diagnosed with lung cancer within 10 years after transplantation, lung recipients developed lung cancer significantly sooner following transplantation (p=0.001) than other organ recipients (median time to diagnosis 3.4 years [95%CI 1.6, 5.2] and 5.5 years [95%CI 4.9, 6.1] respectively). The higher incidence and earlier development of lung cancer among lung recipients was not associated with poorer outcome: median survival from diagnosis of lung cancer among lung recipients was 131 days (95%CI 65, 220) and other organ recipients 137 days (95%CI 99, 190). Small cell subtype of lung cancer (which has poorer prognosis) was more common among other organ recipients (10%) than lung recipients (3%).
Lung cancer is a significantly greater challenge among lung recipients compared to other solid organ recipients, affecting more patients earlier in their post-transplant period. Possible reasons for absence of poorer survival among lung recipients may include lower proportion of small cell type of cancer and diagnosis at earlier stage of cancer due to routine post transplant imaging of lungs.
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
Desai R, Collett D, Evans T, Neuberger J. Lung Recipients with Post-Transplant Lung Cancer and Comparison with Other Organ Recipients [abstract]. Am J Transplant. 2013; 13 (suppl 5). https://atcmeetingabstracts.com/abstract/lung-recipients-with-post-transplant-lung-cancer-and-comparison-with-other-organ-recipients/. Accessed June 1, 2025.« Back to 2013 American Transplant Congress