title: Survival according to the site of bronchial microscopic residual disease after lung resection for non-small cell lung cancer.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We performed a retrospective study evaluating the effect on survival of different sites of microscopic residual disease at the bronchial resection margin after surgical intervention for non-small cell lung cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  Survival of patients with different sites of residual disease was compared with survival of patients with curative resections, taking the pathologic TNM stage of the tumor into consideration.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was a trend for patients with stage I and II non-small cell lung cancer with residual disease limited to the epithelium and with peribronchial invasion to behave like patients with complete resections (61% and 41% five-year survival for stage I and II disease, respectively). This contrasts with patients with submucosal invasion and lymphatic infiltration, among whom there were no survivors at 5 years. There was no difference in survival between curative resections and residual disease of any type when the tumor was stage III or IV.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In patients with stage I and II disease, when residual disease consists of submucosal invasion or lymphatic infiltration, specific and aggressive treatments to clear residual margins might be contemplated because of their possible adverse effect on survival. This contrasts with patients with stage III and IV disease, in whom survival is more related to the stage of the primary tumor than to residual disease.
authors.affiliation: Service of Thoracic Surgery, Geneva University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland. stephane.collaud@olympe.ch
authors.forename: Stéphane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Collaud
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bongiovanni
authors.forename: Jean-Claude
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Pache
authors.forename: Gérald
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fioretta
authors.forename: John H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Robert
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001980:Bronchi / Q000473:pathology*; D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018365:Neoplasm, Residual; D011013:Pneumonectomy; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate