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DISCUSSION

Cancer is a disease in which abnormal cells divide without control. If untreated, the natural history of most cancers is continued growth and progression. However, partial or complete spontaneous regression (SR)(ie, without treatment) of cancer rarely happens. 1 SR of cancer has an estimated incidence of 1 in 60,000 to 100,000 cancer cases, 2 and this frequency varies across different cancer types. In renal cell carcinoma, melanoma and metastatic testicular cancer, SR is more frequent compared with other cancer types. 2 The exact incidence of SR is difficult to elucidate and may be underestimated because:(1) only some of the cancers destined to spontaneously regress will come to clinical attention, while others will never be discovered; and/or (2) when a cancer that is destined to spontaneously regress is diagnosed, cancer-directed therapies are likely to be implemented, altering the natural course …