Small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the cervix: insights from a state cancer institute in India.

Authors

Nishu Dhingra, Dama Swetha, Pariseema S Dave, Bijal M Patel, Chetna Parekh, Ruchi Arora

Published in

Ecancermedicalscience. Volume 20. Pages 2109. Epub Apr 07, 2026.

Abstract

Small-cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the cervix (NECC) is a rare and aggressive malignancy, accounting for 0.5%-1% of invasive cervical cancers. It is marked by rapid progression, early nodal and distant spread, and poor survival even in early stages. Management is challenging in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) due to delayed diagnosis and advanced presentation. This study describes the clinicopathological features, treatment approaches and outcomes from a state cancer institute in India.
We retrospectively analysed data of women with biopsy-proven NECC treated between January 2004 and December 2020 at a tertiary state cancer centre. Clinical, pathological and treatment data were extracted. Immunohistochemistry confirmed all cases. Survival was assessed using Kaplan-Meier analysis.
Of 54 patients identified, 32 were included for analysis. Median age was 51.2 years (range 30-77). Most patients were multiparous, 87.5% illiterate and 31.2% tobacco users. Advanced disease presentation noted, 68.7% with stage III and 12.5% with stage IV. Tumour size >4 cm was noted in 81.2%, pelvic nodes in 53.1% and para-aortic nodes in 29%. Treatment included concurrent chemoradiation (n = 19), surgery and adjuvant chemoradiation (n = 5), neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by chemoradiation (n = 5) and palliative therapy (n = 3). Platinum-etoposide was the most frequently used chemotherapy regimen. Median time to recurrence was 9 months; pelvic and distant metastases were common. Four-year overall survival was 24.7%. Only two long-term survivors were observed, both stage III patients treated with intensive multimodality therapy.
NECC demonstrates aggressive clinical behaviour with poor survival despite multimodality treatment. Early diagnosis, timely systemic therapy and collaborative multicentre data are essential to improve outcomes, especially in LMIC settings.

PMID:
42416232
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 08 Jul 2026.

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