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Clinics and Practice Nov 2022Mediastinal lymph node assessment is a crucial step in non-small cell lung cancer staging. Positron emission tomography (PET) has been the gold standard for the...
Mediastinal lymph node assessment is a crucial step in non-small cell lung cancer staging. Positron emission tomography (PET) has been the gold standard for the assessment of mediastinal lymphadenopathy, though it has limited specificity. Endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) is quick, accurate, and a less invasive method for obtaining a diagnostic sample in contrast to mediastinoscopy. We performed a retrospective chart analysis of 171 patients to assess the adequacy of tissue obtained by EBUS for diagnosis and molecular profiling as well as the assessment of staging and lymph node (LN) stations diagnostic yield, in correlation to PET scan and the operator’s level of experience. A significantly increased tissue adequacy was observed based on the operators’ experience, with the highest adequacy noted in trained Interventional Pulmonologist (IP) (100%), followed by >5 years of experience (93.33%), and 88.89% adequacy with <5 years of experience (p = 0.0019). PET-CT scan 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake in levels 1, 2, and 3 LN had a tissue adequacy of 76.67%, 54.64%, and 35.56%, respectively (p = 0.0009). EBUS bronchoscopy method could be used to achieve an accurate diagnosis, with IP-trained operators yielding the best results. There is no correlation with PET scan positivity, indicating that both PET and EBUS are complementary methods needed for staging.
PubMed: 36412678
DOI: 10.3390/clinpract12060099 -
Medicine Nov 2022It is often difficult to perform transthoracic esophagectomy (TTE) in patients with chest deformities, as these patients may be lost to surgery for non-oncological...
RATIONALE
It is often difficult to perform transthoracic esophagectomy (TTE) in patients with chest deformities, as these patients may be lost to surgery for non-oncological reasons.
PATIENT CONCERNS
In this case, we had a patient with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) who was not suitable for TTE because of extensive thoracic adhesions caused by the left pneumonectomy 8 years ago.
DIAGNOSES
ESCC.
INTERVENTIONS
Based on Professor Fujiwara's surgical method, we further improved it by proposing a single-port inflatable mediastinoscopy combined with laparoscopic-assisted esophagectomy.
OUTCOMES
At the time of this writing, computed tomography and gastroscopy revealed no stenosis of anastomosis, and no evidence of disease recurrence.
LESSONS
To the best of our knowledge, the present case is the first single-port inflatable mediastinoscopic esophagectomy performed on a patient undergoing pneumonectomy.
Topics: Humans; Esophagectomy; Esophageal Neoplasms; Mediastinoscopy; Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local
PubMed: 36401468
DOI: 10.1097/MD.0000000000031619 -
Journal of Thoracic Disease Oct 2022Accurate mediastinal staging of lung cancer patients is critical for determining appropriate treatment. Mediastinoscopy and endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS)-guided...
BACKGROUND
Accurate mediastinal staging of lung cancer patients is critical for determining appropriate treatment. Mediastinoscopy and endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS)-guided transbronchial needle aspiration are the most commonly utilized techniques. Limited data exist on training and practice trends among thoracic surgeons. We aimed to determine training and practice patterns and find whether there is a paradigm shift in mediastinal staging after the introduction of EBUS into practice among thoracic surgeons in the United States.
METHODS
28-question survey was constructed querying demographic, training, and practice patterns with mediastinoscopy and EBUS and was sent to practicing thoracic surgeons in the United States. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize quantitative data.
RESULTS
Ninety-eight responded with a 93% completion rate. Eighty-seven percent of respondents received training in EBUS and 70% perform EBUS routinely. All respondents believe EBUS should be incorporated into thoracic surgery training curriculums. Majority of those who prefer EBUS feel EBUS is safer than mediastinoscopy, allows access to lymph nodes stations or lesions inaccessible by mediastinoscopy and prefer EBUS to avoid re-do mediastinoscopy and in irradiated mediastinum. Majority of those who prefer mediastinoscopy reported they perform more accurate staging compared to EBUS, that mediastinoscopy is more accurate in diagnosing lymphoma or sarcoidosis and that frozen section can be done at the same interval as resection. Among surgeons who prefer EBUS, 94% biopsy 3 or more lymph node stations, 86% routinely biopsy hilar (N1) nodes while 8% never biopsy N1 nodes. Of surgeons who prefer mediastinoscopy. Ninety-seven percent biopsy 3 or more lymph node stations, only 27% routinely biopsy N1 nodes and 70% never biopsy N1 nodes.
CONCLUSIONS
EBUS is used frequently by thoracic surgeons in their practice for mediastinal staging. Methods of obtaining proficiency in EBUS widely varied among surgeons. In addition to mediastinoscopy, dedicated EBUS training should be incorporated into thoracic surgery training curriculums.
PubMed: 36389296
DOI: 10.21037/jtd-22-183 -
Turk Gogus Kalp Damar Cerrahisi Dergisi Jul 2022In this study, we aimed to compare the performances of clinical methods, minimally invasive methods, mediastinoscopy, and re-mediastinoscopy used in the restaging of...
BACKGROUND
In this study, we aimed to compare the performances of clinical methods, minimally invasive methods, mediastinoscopy, and re-mediastinoscopy used in the restaging of patients receiving neoadjuvant therapy for pathologically proven N2. Our secondary objective was to determine the most optimal algorithm for initial staging and restaging after neoadjuvant therapy.
METHODS
Between April 2003 and August 2017, a total of 105 patients (99 males, 6 females; mean age: 54.5±8.2 years; range, 27 to 73 years) who were diagnosed with pathologically proven Stage 3A-B N2 non-small cell lung cancer and received neoadjuvant therapy and subsequently lung resection were retrospectively analyzed. Staging algorithm groups (Group 1=first mediastinoscopy-second clinic, Group 2=first mediastinoscopy-second minimally invasive, Group 3=first mediastinoscopy-second re-mediastinoscopy, and Group 4=first minimally invasive-second mediastinoscopy) were created and compared.
RESULTS
In the first stage, N2 diagnosis was made in 90 patients by mediastinoscopy and in 15 patients by minimally invasive method. In the second stage, 44 patients were restaged by the clinical method, 23 by the minimally invasive method, 23 by re-mediastinoscopy, and 15 by mediastinoscopy. The false negativity rates of Groups 1, 2, 3, and 4 were 27.2%, 26.1%, 21.8%, and 13.3%, respectively. The most reliable staging algorithm was found to be the minimally invasive method in the first step and mediastinoscopy in the second step. The mean overall five-year survival rate was 46.3±4.4%, and downstaging in lymph node involvement was found to have a favorable effect on survival (54.3% vs. 21.8%, respectively; p=0.003).
CONCLUSION
The staging method to be chosen before and after neoadjuvant therapy is critical in the treatment of Stage 3A-B N2 non-small cell lung cancer. In re-mediastinoscopy, the rate of false negativity increases due to technical difficulties and insufficient sampling. As the most optimal staging algorithm, the minimally invasive method is recommended in the first step and mediastinoscopy in the second step.
PubMed: 36303707
DOI: 10.5606/tgkdc.dergisi.2022.21347 -
Journal of Thoracic Disease Sep 2022Mediastinal lymph node (LN) dissection during lung resection is essential for accurate staging. Station 4L dissection is anatomically difficult. Therefore, care should...
BACKGROUND
Mediastinal lymph node (LN) dissection during lung resection is essential for accurate staging. Station 4L dissection is anatomically difficult. Therefore, care should be taken to avoid complications. We investigated the importance of mediastinal LN dissection in left upper lobe lung cancer and evaluated intraoperative videos to identify relevant steps during dissection.
METHODS
We retrospectively reviewed 151 consecutive patients with left upper lobe lung cancer. Finally, 139 patients were enrolled to examine the survival effects of clinical factors of metastatic LN stations. The association between risk factors or surgical procedures and recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy was analyzed.
RESULTS
LN dissection of the left upper lobe revealed station 4L LN metastasis in nine patients, three of whom were node-negative on mediastinoscopy. Station 4L LN status was confirmed intraoperatively in 12 of 33 patients. Twenty patients had recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy, four of whom were complicated with aspiration pneumonia. Station 4L LN dissection was an independent risk factor for recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy (P=0.03). The use of an energy device near the recurrent laryngeal nerve was a significant risk factor for recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy. Incidentally, pathological N stage ≥2 was an independent prognostic factor for disease-free survival (DFS) (P=0.005) herein.
CONCLUSIONS
In patients with left upper lobe lung cancer, pathological N2 disease is an important predictor of recurrence. Therefore, accurate mediastinal LN dissection, including at station 4L, should be performed. We propose to standardize the dissection procedure at each institution to avoid complications, such as recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy.
PubMed: 36245624
DOI: 10.21037/jtd-22-537 -
The Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeon Jan 2023The coexistence of pleural and pericardial effusions in frail patients with or without confirmed neoplasia necessitates the use of a minimally invasive technique that...
The coexistence of pleural and pericardial effusions in frail patients with or without confirmed neoplasia necessitates the use of a minimally invasive technique that has a minor impact on the patient's general status and allows for fast fluid evacuation and biopsy sampling if necessary. We present a subxiphoid mediastinoscopic autonomous (simultaneous noncommunicating) double fenestration approach for these patients with both diagnostic and therapeutic advantages in selected cases. Using the mediastinoscope alone through the subxiphoid incision can considerably reduce the duration of operation, allow for fluid evacuation, and significantly alleviate the patient's symptoms. This method enables the sampling of pleural and pericardial fluids and targeted tissue, if necessary.
Topics: Humans; Mediastinoscopes; Treatment Outcome; Pericardial Effusion; Mediastinoscopy; Biopsy
PubMed: 36216329
DOI: 10.1055/s-0042-1757177 -
EJNMMI Physics Sep 2022[F] FDG PET-CT has an important role in the initial staging of lung cancer; however, accurate differentiation between activity in malignant and benign intrathoracic...
BACKGROUND
[F] FDG PET-CT has an important role in the initial staging of lung cancer; however, accurate differentiation between activity in malignant and benign intrathoracic lymph nodes on PET-CT scans can be challenging. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of incorporating primary tumour data and clinical features to differentiate between [F] FDG-avid malignant and benign intrathoracic lymph nodes.
METHODS
We retrospectively selected lung cancer patients who underwent PET-CT for initial staging in two centres in the Netherlands. The primary tumour and suspected lymph node metastases were annotated and cross-referenced with pathology results. Lymph nodes were classified as malignant or benign. From the image data, we extracted radiomic features and trained the classifier model using the extreme gradient boost (XGB) algorithm. Various scenarios were defined by selecting different combinations of data input and clinical features. Data from centre 1 were used for training and validation of the models using the XGB algorithm. To determine the performance of the model in a different hospital, the XGB model was tested using data from centre 2.
RESULTS
Adding primary tumour data resulted in a significant gain in the performance of the trained classifier model. Adding the clinical information about distant metastases did not lead to significant improvement. The performance of the model in the test set (centre 2) was slightly but statistically significantly lower than in the validation set (centre 1).
CONCLUSIONS
Using the XGB algorithm potentially leads to an improved model for the classification of intrathoracic lymph nodes. The inclusion of primary tumour data improved the performance of the model, while additional knowledge of distant metastases did not. In patients in whom metastases are limited to lymph nodes in the thorax, this may reduce costly and invasive procedures such as endobronchial ultrasound or mediastinoscopy procedures.
PubMed: 36153446
DOI: 10.1186/s40658-022-00494-8 -
Surgical Case Reports Sep 2022Mediastinal foreign bodies might cause mediastinal organ injury or mediastinal abscess. The prompt removal surgery of mediastinal foreign bodies is needed to prevent...
BACKGROUND
Mediastinal foreign bodies might cause mediastinal organ injury or mediastinal abscess. The prompt removal surgery of mediastinal foreign bodies is needed to prevent those complications. We report a case in which a mediastinal foreign body was removed by video-mediastinoscopy.
CASE PRESENTATION
The patient, a 74-year-old man with a chief complaint of hoarseness, was referred to our department for surgical management of a wooden foreign body that had traumatically migrated into the superior mediastinum. During the surgery, the video-mediastinoscopy was introduced under the pneumomediastinal pressure. We could dissect the scar tissue and remove the azalea tree branch safely and carefully, without damaging the other mediastinal organs. He was discharged on postoperative day 5, with no complications.
CONCLUSIONS
Video-mediastinoscopic approach under pneumomediastinal pressure is minimally invasive and could provide wide surgical view. Therefore, we consider it useful and effective for removal of foreign bodies in the mediastinum.
PubMed: 36138272
DOI: 10.1186/s40792-022-01525-3 -
Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery Aug 2022
PubMed: 36038902
DOI: 10.1186/s13019-022-01972-x