July 2026, Volume 4, Issue 7

Author

R. Arvindraj, G. Varagunapandian, Aarthi Saravanan and R. Buvaneshwari

Abstract

Background: Synchronous double primary malignancy is described as the presence of two histologically different primary tumors that occur either simultaneously or at intervals not exceeding six months. Their prevalence is on the rise because of better methods of diagnosis, early cancer detection, and prolonged survival of cancer patients. Early identification of the second primary malignancy is important to distinguish it from metastatic tumors. Methods: The retrospective study involved 18 patients diagnosed with synchronous double primary malignancies from a tertiary cancer referral facility during the period of January 2023 to January 2026. Data regarding demographic characteristics, clinical/pathological factors, and therapy was obtained from hospital records. Results: Out of the 18 patients included in the study, 15 (83.3%) were females with a median age of 53.5 years. The most frequent cancer type was breast carcinoma, with ovarian and endometrial cancers coming second. Combination of bilateral breast carcinomas and synchronous ovarian-endometrial carcinomas was the most frequent combination among these tumors. Majority of the cases had positive family history of cancer. All of the patients underwent therapeutic procedures, where 10 patients underwent neoadjuvant therapy with subsequent surgery and 8 underwent surgery alone. Conclusion: Synchronous double primary tumors call for timely diagnosis and a multidisciplinary approach for favourable outcomes. Early diagnosis and proper treatment may provide good short-term survival rates, but more studies on this rare disease condition are required.