[Pulmonary resection for metastatic colorectal cancer]

We reviewed the clinical courses of 25 patients who underwent pulmonary resection for metastatic lesions from colorectal cancer between January 1991 and December 2001. The cumulative survivals at 3 and 5 years were 72% and 63%, respectively. Sex, site of the primary tumor, presence of extrapulmonary metastases, disease-free interval, location of pulmonary metastases (PM), number of PM, size of PM, mode of operation, pre-thoracotomy serum carcinoembryonic antigen level, and post-thoracotomy chemotherapy were not found to be statistically significant prognostic factors. Age (70 years < or =) was a predictor of a shorter survival duration by univariate analysis (p = 0.02). Recurrence was observed in 19 patients, 11 of which were lung recurrences. Eight patients underwent repeated pulmonary resection. The median survival in these 8 patients was 23 months after second pulmonary operation. Surgical treatment for pulmonary metastases from colorectal cancer in selected patients might improve prognosis.