Long-term Survival over 28 Years of a Patient with Metastatic Adrenal Cortical Carcinoma - Case Report

Abstract

Adrenal cortical carcinoma (ACC) is a rare and highly malignant tumour with up to 70% of the patients diagnosed at an advanced clinical stage, up to 40% presenting with metastases. Even after complete surgical excision, up to 80% of the patients show locoregional recurrence or metastases. We report a case of a 62-year-old woman with a non-functional ACC of the left adrenal gland (T₂ N₀ M₀ classified as stage II). After the initial resection, 3 operations for metastasis of the contralateral adrenal gland and 4 operations for metastasis of the lungs were carried out, allowing survival for more than 28 years with a good quality of life. This case report emphasises the need for careful clinical and radiographic follow-up. A repeat surgical approach should be adopted whenever possible providing long-term survival over decades.