Value of washings and brushings at fibreoptic bronchoscopy in the diagnosis of lung cancer.

A retrospective study was performed to evaluate the diagnostic yield for lung cancer from histological biopsy specimens and from washings and brushings for cytological examination taken at fibreoptic bronchoscopy. The records of 680 bronchoscopies were analysed. Of 300 patients eventually diagnosed as having a malignant lesion, 188 had had biopsy, washing, and brushing. Of these, 125 had endoscopically visible tumour (group A) and 63 had no abnormal findings or abnormal findings that were not diagnostic of malignancy (group B). In group A biopsy specimens gave a positive result in 76% of cases, washings in 49.6%, and brushings in 52%; biopsy material gave the only positive result in 22.4% of cases, washings in 2.2%, and brushings in 4.8%. In group B biopsy specimens were positive in 36.5%, washings in 38.1%, and brushings in 28.6%; biopsy gave the only positive result in 11.1% of cases, washing in 9.5%, and brushing in 3.2%. Washing had a higher diagnostic yield than brushing in group B. Biopsy and cytological examination of either washings or brushings were found to give over 95% of all positive results in group A, but in group B the combination of biopsy and washing was more often successful (94.3%) than biopsy and brushing (82.8%). It is concluded that for the maximum diagnostic yield in the diagnosis of lung cancer biopsy should be combined with cytology using both washings and brushings.     

Prognostic value of the histological subtype in completely resected non-small cell lung cancer

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), which includes several different histological subtypes, is usually treated by the same strategy. However, the biological behavior of each cell type appears to be different. We retrospectively reviewed the clinical records of 1119 consecutive NSCLC patients who underwent a complete resection, in order to investigate whether a histological cell type is a powerful prognostic factor. The overall 5- and 10-year survivals of the patients with adenocarcinoma (AD), squamous cell carcinoma (SQ), large cell carcinoma (LA), and adenosquamous cell carcinoma (AS) were 54.2 and 40.2%, 51.6 and 30.3%, 40.9 and 18.7%, and 35.1 and 30.1%, respectively. The AD patients had a significantly better survival than the non-AD patients in Stage I (P=0.0004), whereas the SQ patients had a better survival than the non-SQ patients in Stage II (P=0.018). A multivariate survival analysis indicated the AD patients to have a significantly better survival than the SQ patients in Stage IA (P=0.04), while the SQ patients had a better survival than the AD patients in Stage II (P=0.03). These above observations suggest that the prognosis after complete resection is different between adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma in Stage IA and II.     

Progress in lung cancer: Non-oat cell (non-small cell lung cancer)

Lung cancer remains the greatest killing cancer in the United States with 149,000 new cases expected in 1987. The present expected mortality rate is 87 per cent. More women in the United States died of lung cancer than breast cancer in 1986. Asymptomatic, early and curable lung cancer in high risk individuals is usually found by routine chest X-ray. So-called Stage I lung cancer was reported to have a 83 per cent survival rate at three years by Martini and Beattie in 1977 and 70 per cent five year survival rate subsequently. When the more than 30,000 volunteer males were enrolled in the National Cancer Institute, national lung program for screening, 223 unsuspected lung cancers were found. 47 per cent were Stage I with a survival rate at five years of over 76 per cent. The PMI-Strang/Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center study found 53 cancers in its first screen and 235 lung cancers over the next eight years of the study. Forty per cent were Stage I with a five year survival rate of 70 per cent. Sputum cytology as compared to chest X-ray was of little additional value. Studies (Martini) of N1 lung cancer was found to have a 49 per cent survival rate following resection. The N2 group of lung cancers where the mediastinal tumor was surgically removable and followed by external radiation therapy had a 27 per cent survival rate at five years. Those tumors with solitary brain metastases where the solitary brain metastasis could be resected and the primary tumor controlled, gave a 27 per cent survival rate at six years. The group of advanced N2 disease where the mediastinum could not be completely cleared were a serious group of cancers. A study of 100 patients treated from 1977 to 1980 with surgery plus internal radiotherapy followed by external radiotherapy had an overall 22 per cent survival rate for four to eight years with most of the deaths occurring because of metastases outside the chest. More recently chemotherapy has been used pre-operatively for those individuals with advanced lung cancer in the chest then followed by a combination of surgery, internal radiotherapy, external radiotherapy and more chemotherapy, if chemotherapy sensitive. This is the so-called multidisciplinary approach. In our present early studies it seems that those so treated who are chemotherapy sensitive have a 44 per cent, two year survival rate in a group of patients considered to have extremely poor prognosis. Director Kriser Lung Cancer Center, Chief Thoracic Surgery, Director Clinical Cancer Programs, Beth Israel Medical Center Chief Medical Officer Emeritus, Attending Surgeon, Member of Board of Overseers, Memorial-Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center This report is the gist of a paper read by E.J.B. at the 87th Annual Congress of the Japanese Surgical Society, Tokyo, Japan, 1987.     

Angiogenesis in non-small cell lung cancer

Two processes are necessary for a tumor colony to grow and become invasive: angiogenesis and basement membrane degradation. Angiogenesis is the formation of new blood vessels from the endothelium of existing vasculature, in response to the metabolic demand of the tumor. Assessment of the degree of tumor angiogenesis may improve risk stratification in patients with lung cancer, especially those with early-stage disease. In addition, the strategy of blocking the mechanism of angiogenesis may prove to be an effective therapeutic alternative for patients with nonsmall cell lung cancer. Clinical trials evaluating novel antiangiogenic agents, including antibodies to vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and compounds directed at the tyrosine kinase receptor, are ongoing.     

Visceral pleural invasion classification in non-small cell lung cancer: a proposal on the basis of outcome assessment

OBJECTIVE: The definition of visceral pleural invasion in lung cancer TNM classification of the International Union Against Cancer lacks detail. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the significance of the extent of pleural involvement as a prognostic factor and to propose a refined TNM classification on the basis of visceral pleural invasion. METHODS: We reviewed 1653 consecutive patients with T1, T2, and T3 surgically resected non-small cell lung cancer for their clinicopathologic characteristics and prognoses. Visceral pleural invasion was classified by using the Japan Lung Cancer Society criteria: p0, tumor with no pleural involvement beyond its elastic layer; p1, tumor extension beyond the elastic layer but no exposure on the pleural surface; and p2, tumor exposure on the pleural surface. RESULTS: The 5-year survivals for patients with p1 or p2 tumors of 3 cm or less were identical and significantly worse than those for patients with p0 tumors of the same size. Patients with p1 or p2 tumors of greater than 3 cm and patients with T3 cancers had essentially identical survivals. CONCLUSIONS: Visceral pleural invasion should be defined as tumor extension beyond the elastic layer of the visceral pleura, regardless of its exposure on the pleural surface. A tumor of 3 cm or less with visceral pleural invasion should remain classified as a T2 tumor, as presently occurs in the International Union Against Cancer staging system, and tumors of greater than 3 cm with visceral pleural invasion should be upgraded to T3 status in the International Union Against Cancer TNM classification.     

Therapeutic advances in non-small cell lung cancer

Despite decades of research, therapeutic advances in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have progressed at a painstaking slow rate with few improvements in standard surgical resection for early stage disease and chemotherapy or radiotherapy for patients with advanced disease. In the past 18 months, however, we seemed to have reached an inflexion point: therapeutic advances that are centred on improvements in the understanding of patient selection, surgery that is undertaken through smaller incisions, identification of candidate mutations accompanied by the development of targeted anticancer treatments with a focus on personalised medicine, improvements to radiotherapy technology, emergence of radiofrequency ablation (RFA), and last but by no means least, the recognition of palliative care as a therapeutic modality in its own right. The contributors to this review are a distinguished international panel of experts who highlight recent advances in each of the major disciplines.     

Novel therapies in non-small cell lung cancer

Over the last years, several new systemic cancer therapy strategies have been introduced to turn the growing insights of molecular aberrations involved in the development and progression of lung cancer into better treatment options fort the patients. This review presents some of the most important biological targets and biomarkers relevant in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer. Especially EGFR mutations, anti-angiogenesis, multi kinase inhibition, vascular disrupting agents, vaccines, m-TOR inhibitors, TRAIL inhibition and several biomarkers are highlighted including current study results.     

Aberrant methylation in non-small cell lung cancer

The potential of tumor suppressor genes (TSGs) to serve as clinical markers for disease detection, progression, and therapeutic response was evaluated by conducting a comprehensive review of the English-language scientific literature on aberrant promoter methylation of TSGs in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Genome-wide hypermethylation and silencing of TSGs are common features of cancer cells. Aberrant promoter methylation has been found in NSCLC, and research is now focused on the identification of specific genes that exhibit differential expression levels based on the methylation state. Aberrant methylation in NSCLC is observed in the early development of cancer and can be detected in DNA circulating in the blood or isolated from sputum. Therefore, methylation assays offer the promise of a noninvasive test for detecting cancer. In addition, the identification of cancer-specific epigenetic changes may be useful for molecular classification and disease stratification. Hence, the detection of cancerspecific methylation changes heralds an exciting new era in the diagnosis of cancer, its prognosis, and therapeutic responsiveness, and warrants further investigation in NSCLC.     

空洞型非小细胞肺癌的预后分析

Objective To explore the survival and prognostic status of the cavitating non-small cell lung cancer. Methods A total 42 surgically treated patients with cavitating non-small cell lung cancer were studied retrospectively. Kaplan-Meiei was used to analyze the relationship between the prognostic factors and survival time. The cavitaing non-small cell lung cancer were matched 1:2 to the patients with non-small cell lung cancer that there is no cavity in X-ray, for gender, age, histology, lymph nodes dissection, stage, and whether receiving chemotherapy. The two groups were compared using the Log-rank test. Results The overall 1, 3, 5- year- survival rates for cavitating non-small cell lung cancer were 76.2%, 28.6%, and 14.7%, respectively. The diameter of the cavity and lymph nodes status significantly influenced syrvivals. 1he overall syrvival between the two groups of patients showed no sig- nificant differences (P=0.075). But the factors of women(P=O.040), younger than 60 years(P =0.032), NO of the lymph nodes dissection group(P=0.046), and staging Ⅰ were significantly influenced 5-year survivals(P=0.048). Conclusion The diameter of the cavity and lymph nodes status were correlated with the survival. The carcinomatous cavity are important prognosis factors for the nan-retail cell lung cancer patients of younger than 60 years, negative of lymph nodes dissection and staging Ⅰ , but whether the carci- nomtous cavity are important prognosis factors for the non-small cell lung cancer patients of woman was not determined.     

空洞型非小细胞肺癌的预后分析

Objective To explore the survival and prognostic status of the cavitating non-small cell lung cancer. Methods A total 42 surgically treated patients with cavitating non-small cell lung cancer were studied retrospectively. Kaplan-Meiei was used to analyze the relationship between the prognostic factors and survival time. The cavitaing non-small cell lung cancer were matched 1:2 to the patients with non-small cell lung cancer that there is no cavity in X-ray, for gender, age, histology, lymph nodes dissection, stage, and whether receiving chemotherapy. The two groups were compared using the Log-rank test. Results The overall 1, 3, 5- year- survival rates for cavitating non-small cell lung cancer were 76.2%, 28.6%, and 14.7%, respectively. The diameter of the cavity and lymph nodes status significantly influenced syrvivals. 1he overall syrvival between the two groups of patients showed no sig- nificant differences (P=0.075). But the factors of women(P=O.040), younger than 60 years(P =0.032), NO of the lymph nodes dissection group(P=0.046), and staging Ⅰ were significantly influenced 5-year survivals(P=0.048). Conclusion The diameter of the cavity and lymph nodes status were correlated with the survival. The carcinomatous cavity are important prognosis factors for the nan-retail cell lung cancer patients of younger than 60 years, negative of lymph nodes dissection and staging Ⅰ , but whether the carci- nomtous cavity are important prognosis factors for the non-small cell lung cancer patients of woman was not determined.     

Surgery for non-small cell lung cancer: postoperative survival based on the revised tumor-node-metastasis classification and its time trend.

OBJECTIVE: To clarify results of surgery for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) based on the new tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) classification revised in 1997 and its time trend. METHODS: A total of 921 patients operated from 1980-1994 were retrospectively reviewed. For analysis of time trend, they were grouped into three periods by the year of operation (period (1): 1980-1984, period (2): 1985-1989, and period (3): 1990-19-94). RESULTS: Concerning patients' characteristics, recent increase in the ratio of patients whose tumor was discovered at mass screening (31% in period (1), 40% in period (2), and 50% in period (3)), and increase in the ratio of p-stage IA patient (16, 20, and 29%, respectively) were marked. Decrease in the ratio of operation-related death and the ratio of exploratory thoracotomy was significant. Concerning level of operation, decrease in the ratio of pneumonectomy, increase in the ration of sublober resection and that of tracheal or bronchoplastic procedures were significant. Postoperative survival for all patients was significantly better in period (2) or (3) than that in period (1); no significant difference was demonstrated between period (2) and (3) (5-year survival rates: 35% for period (1), 56% for period (2), and 56% for period (3)). Stratified p-stage, improvement of postoperative survival in recent years was demonstrated in p-stage IIA, IIB, IIIA, and IIIB diseases. CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative survival for all NSCLC patients has been improved with significant increase of early-stage (p-stage IA) patients. Concerning level of resection, recent increase in patients who underwent sublobar resection and bronchoplastic procedures was marked.