Successful treatment of two consecutive cases of pulmonary pleomorphic carcinoma with platinum chemotherapy

Abstract

Pulmonary pleomorphic carcinoma (PPC) is a rare pulmonary malignant tumor that has a more aggressive clinical course and a poorer prognosis compared with non‑small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) due to its resistance to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In patients with advanced or relapsed PPC, it has been reported that the response rate to chemotherapy regimens known to be effective in patients with NSCLC is only 0-17%. The present study reports the cases of two consecutive patients with advanced PPC who exhibited marked responses to chemotherapy with carboplatin plus paclitaxel chemotherapy and long‑term survival without tumor progression. This suggests that carboplatin plus paclitaxel chemotherapy is a good option for the treatment of advanced PPC.