Summary of Key Points Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) is recommended in treatment guidelines as the nonoperative therapy of choice for early-stage nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC). SABR can be adequately performed using either traditional linear accelerators equipped with suitable image-guidance…
Summary of Key Points Patient selection is crucial to ensure treatment selection and optimal outcome. The performance status, described by, for example, the Karnofsky or the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) score, is the most important prognostic parameter. The benefit…
Summary of Key Points The hallmarks of radiobiology are the “4 Rs”: r epair, r eassortment, r eoxygenation, r epopulation. Radiation exerts its biologic effects by causing damage to DNA. The linear–quadratic model provides a convenient method to compare different…
Summary of Key Points Radiotherapy plays a central role in the treatment of lung cancer for patients in both the palliative and curative settings. Major advances in the technologic aspects of both radiotherapy and medical imaging have dramatically increased the…
Summary of Key Points Up to 25% of patients with stage I nonsmall cell lung cancer are considered medically inoperable or high risk for surgery. Therapies such as stereotactic body radiation therapy or ablation offer a less invasive alternative to…
Summary of Key Points Multiple primary lung cancers (MPLCs) are increasing in incidence as imaging accuracies improve and resections are better tolerated. Differentiating MPLCs from intrathoracic metastatic disease is challenging and based primarily on clinical judgment. Molecular analysis for tumor…
Summary of Key Points Bronchovascular sleeve resection is an essential technique for general thoracic surgeons to preserve as much as possible the patient’s lung function and quality of life after pulmonary resection. Previous reports suggested that the incidence rates of…
Summary of Key Points Chest Wall: Invasion of parietal pleura and chest wall indicates T3; involvement of vertebral body indicates T4 chest wall tumor. Extensive resection required. Long-term survival possible postresection if: No distant metastases No mediastinal lymph node involvement…
Summary of Key Points With the realization that many more lung cancers are being detected, which may not only be indolent but also smaller than 2 cm, thoracic surgeons are considering sublobar resections in their practice. There are conflicting data…
Summary of Key Points Robotic surgery can be used for completely portal (no utility incision) or robotic-assisted (uses utility incision) techniques. Appropriate patient and port positioning are critical for a successful performance of robotic lobectomy. Perioperative morbidity and mortality for…