Video-assisted thoracic surgery lobectomy: single institutional experience with 704 cases

Area of Science:

• Thoracic Surgery
• Surgical Oncology
• Pulmonary Medicine

Background:

• Video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) lobectomy is increasingly used for early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
• Uncertainty exists regarding VATS lobectomy's impact on local recurrence and long-term survival in NSCLC patients.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate short-term and midterm outcomes of VATS lobectomy.
• To assess postoperative morbidity, mortality, recurrence rates, and survival following VATS lobectomy.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of patients undergoing VATS lobectomy.
• Analysis of outcomes including morbidity, mortality, recurrence, and survival data.

Main Results:

• 704 patients underwent VATS lobectomy; 548 for NSCLC.
• Pathologic upstaging occurred in 20.3% of clinical stage I NSCLC patients.
• Disease-free survival at 3 years was 87.6% for pathologic stage I, 79.3% for N1, and 57.1% for N2 disease.

Conclusions:

• VATS lobectomy is a safe and feasible procedure for early-stage lung cancer.
• Excellent survival outcomes are achievable with VATS lobectomy.
• Survival is not compromised in patients with pathologic N1 or N2 disease undergoing VATS lobectomy.