Epidemiology and outcomes of primary pediatric lung malignancies: Updates from the SEER database

Background Primary pediatric lung malignancies are rare tumors. We provide an updated analysis of the epidemiology and prognosis of these tumors since the last SEER series published in 2009. Methods The SEER 18 database from 1975 to 2016 was analyzed for patients ages 0–19 years with primary lung and/or bronchus neoplasms. Results 348 patients met inclusion criteria. The majority were white and ≥12 years of age. The most common histologies were neuroendocrine (41.4%) and blastoma (16.4%). 75.4% of patients had local-regional disease and 81.4% underwent surgery. Significant differences between histologies were seen for age, year at diagnosis, tumor laterality and location, stage, and treatment type. Median survival was 36.6 years (95% CI 33.3–37.4). Blastoma (HR 3.47) and squamous cell (HR 6.26) carried a significantly higher risk of death than neuroendocrine cancer diagnosis. Conclusion Primary pediatric lung malignancies are rare, long-term survival is favorable but histology-dependent. Surgery continues to be an important treatment modality.