Incidence of malignant pleural effusions (MPEs)
| Patients with MPE (all stages)* % | Patients with disseminated disease or at autopsy with MPE # % | Origin of primary tumour from cytology reviews ¶ % | Annual cancer deaths in the USA+ | Estimated cases. Yr of MPE in the USA | |
| Lung cancer | 8–15 | 20–46 | 25–52 | 160,000 | 32,000–73,600§ |
| Breast cancer | 2–12 | 36–65 | 3–27 | 44,000 | 15,840–28,600 § |
| Lymphoma | 7 | 29–30 | 12–22 | 25,000 | 7,250–7,500 |
| Other malignancies | 29–46 | 330,000 | 23,600–47,000ƒ | ||
| Total | 78,700–156,700ƒ |
*: 2–7
#: 8–11
¶: 12–16
+: 17
§: percentage of patients with MPE (disseminated/autopsy) × cancer deaths
ƒ: Assumes 30% of MPE are from “other malignancies”