Sub-lobar lung resection of peripheral T1N0M0 NSCLC does not affect local recurrence rate.
OBJECTIVE
The use of sub-lobar resection versus lobectomy for stage I non small cell lung cancer is still controversial. This study was undertaken to compare the results of limited resection in terms of survival and local recurrence rate to lobectomy in patients with peripheral stage I non small cell lung cancer.


METHODS
During the 8 year period from 1999 to 2007, 152 consecutive patients with stage I non-small cell lung cancer underwent lung resection at our thoracic surgery unit. In 116 cases we performed a standard lobectomy while in the remaining 36 cases we did sub lobar resection through mini-thoracotomy or video-assisted thoracoscopy. The survival, local recurrence rate and the clinical outcome were analyzed and compared.


RESULTS
Fifty-one patients were staged as T1 N0 M0, 22 in the sub-lobar resection group (61,1%) and 29 (25%) in the lobectomy group. The remaining were staged as T2 N0 M0. Although the patient population undergone to sub-lobar resection was older, with poorer lung function and more co-morbidities, the Kaplan-Meier survival proportion at 5 year did not differ significantly between the two groups: 64% for lobectomy group vs 66,7% for sub-lobar resection group. Overall local recurrence did approach significance in favour of lobectomy group but analyzing only T1 patients, no differences in terms of survival and local recurrence rate were observed.


CONCLUSIONS
The results of this study indicate that in patients with peripheral T1N0M0 non small cell lung cancer the outcome of limited resection is comparable with that of pulmonary lobectomy.
De Giacomo
T
T
University of Rome "Sapienza", Department of Thoracic Surgery, Policlinico Umberto I, Rome, Italy. tiziano.degiacomo@tin.it
Di Stasio
M
M
Diso
D
D
Anile
M
M
Venuta
F
F
Furio Coloni
G
G
D000368:Aged; D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011013:Pneumonectomy / Q000379:methods*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome