Aim and methods: Data of our patients with at least three primary malignancies were retrospectively analysed to detect any remarkable patterns which might be of interest for follow-up or early tumour detection and to identify a possible hereditary cancer predisposition. From 1.1.1954 to 1.8.1995 57 patients (0.1%) among a grand total of 52 398 cancer patients had a minimum of three malignancies.
Results: The 5-year survival rates after colorectal, bladder, prostate, uterine corpus and gastric cancer were higher than those seen in patients with the corresponding solitary tumours. In both sexes, the mean interval between the individual tumours was greater (4.0 years) between the first and second tumours than between the second and third (2.5 years). In women, the intervals were roughly twice as long (6.8 and 3.7 years) as in men (3.7 and 2.0 years). 40.4% (n=23/57) had a colorectal, 28.1% (n=16) a bladder, and 41.7% (n=15/36 men) had a prostate carcinoma. 66.7% (n=14/21 women) contracted at least one gynaecological tumour. In 24 families HNPCC, in one a Li-Fraumeni Syndrome, and in another Hereditary Diffuse Gastric Cancer was suspected.
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