Current surgical therapy for stage IIIA (N2) non-small cell lung cancer

Local therapy alone (surgery or radiation) leads to poor overall survival in patients with stage III non-small cell lung cancer because most of these patients die of distant metastases. During the past 20 years, studies have focused on developing effective chemotherapy regimens that can be combined with local therapies (surgery and/or radiation). The role of surgery has been evaluated, and the selection criteria for resection have been defined.