An official website of the United States government
Home
SEER Inquiry System - Report
Produced: 06/10/2026 3:00 AM
Question 20220030
Inquiry Details
References:
ICD-O-3.2
Question:
Histology--Lung: Is it acceptable to code histology as 8042/3 for a 2020 lung primary when the pathology report states only "oat cell carcinoma?" See Discussion.
Discussion:
In the old 2007 Multiple Primaries/Histology rules, Lung Equivalent Terms and Definitions section, oat cell carcinoma (8042) was listed as one of the obsolete terms that was no longer recognized for small cell carcinoma. That note is not in the current 2018 Solid Tumor Manual lung chapter, and ICDO-3.2 lists oat cell carcinoma as the preferred term for code 8042/3. Would rule H4, Note 2 apply -- only one histology present, if not listed in Table 3 use ICD-O and all updates, to code oat cell carcinoma as 8042/3?
Answer:
While oat cell carcinoma is an outdated term, if that is all the pathology report states, code histology as 8042/3.
Yes, Rule H4 applies: the diagnosis was a single histology. H4 instructs you to refer to the solid tumor H table, and if the term is not found there, check ICD-O and ICD-O updates. All possible histologic types that could occur in the lung may not be included in the table.
