Characteristics of Incident Testicular Cancer in Lebanon - 1990-2015 Single Institutional Experience

Abstract

Background: Despite the fact that testicular cancer is a major health issue with its increasing incidence, very few studies have described its characteristics in the Middle East, particularly in Lebanon. Materials and Methods: We report in this paper a retrospective pilot study of the characteristics of testicular cancer in Lebanon. The demographic, epidemiologic and survival characteristics of 178 patients diagnosed between 1990 and 2015 at an oncology clinic affiliated to Hotel Dieu de France Hospital were analyzed. Results: The mean age at diagnosis was 32 10 years. The most prevalent testicular tumor was the germ cell type (GCT) (95.2%) of which non-seminomatous tumors (NST) were the commonest (64.7%). Most of our patients were diagnosed at an early stage. Lymph node spread affected most commonly the retroperitoneal region and distant visceral metastases occurred in 14.6%. All patients underwent orchiectomy with 67% receiving adjuvant treatment, mainly chemotherapy. After a median follow up of 2,248 days (75.9 months) 16 patients were reported dead. Two, five and ten-year overall survival rates were 96%, 94% and 89% respectively. The median overall survival rate was not reached. Conclusions: Despite being part of the developing world, demographic, epidemiologic and survival analyses of testicular cancer reported in our study are in line with those reported from developed countries and would allow us to extrapolate management plans from these populations.