Prognosis of undetected intrapulmonary metastases in resected lung cancer.
BACKGROUND
Between 1975 and 1989, 839 patients with lung cancer underwent pulmonary resection at Okayama University Medical School; for this study data of the 42 (5.0%) who had intrapulmonary metastasis were analyzed.


RESULTS
The 5-year survival rate for the 42 patients was 25.7%, which was significantly better than that of patients with Stage IV disease and extrapulmonary metastasis, none of whom survived for 3 years. The 2-year survival rate was found to be significantly better in patients with one-lobe metastasis (n = 37; 41.5%) than in those with two-lobe metastasis (n = 5; 20.0%). Adenocarcinoma was the most common tumor (66.8%), followed by squamous cell carcinoma (28.6%), but the prognosis differed little between these two histologic types. Intrapulmonary metastasis did not unfavorably affect the prognosis when the primary tumor was 3 cm or less in greatest dimension and there were no lymph node metastases (T1N0).


CONCLUSIONS
In patients with lung cancer and one-lobe intrapulmonary metastasis, particularly in those with T1N0, a favorable prognosis can be expected after surgery.
Shimizu
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N
Department of Surgery, Okayama University Medical School, Japan.
Ando
A
A
Date
H
H
Teramoto
S
S
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000473:pathology / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000473:pathology / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000556:secondary* / Q000601:surgery*; D008197:Lymph Node Excision; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011013:Pneumonectomy / Q000379:methods; D011379:Prognosis; D015996:Survival Rate