[Tumor surveillance after resection of lung cancer]

The idea of follow-up visits in lung cancer patients treated in a curative intent is on one side early detection and management of treatment related complications and on the other side a long term surveillance program for early detection of new primary lung cancers or recurrences of the primary lung cancer allowing curative (re)-treatment. The first is best performed by the specialists (thoracic surgeons, oncologists, radiotherapists) and the intervals of the follow-up visits are 3-6 months. In this phase adjuvant therapies as well as a specific surveillance program should be determined. Smoking cessation is strongly recommended and an adequate support should be offered. Patients treated in a curative intent and who are in an adequate performance status should be seen in six months intervals in the first three years and thereafter annually by assessing the medical history, physical exam and for applying imaging modalities such as chest X-ray or CT-Scan of the chest and upper abdomen. The patient should be instructed to detect symptoms and react accordingly. Positron Emission Tomography, sputum cytology, tumor markers and blood tests as well as fluorescence bronchoscopy are not recommended for routine follow-up except in controlled randomized trial protocol. These statements are based on guidelines from several societies as well as from a literature research.