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Updated: Jun 11, 2026
Thoracoscopic Extended Right Middle Plus Lower Sleeve Lobectomy for Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer
Published on: February 27, 2026
Surgical outcomes in resected non-small cell lung cancer < or = 1 cm in diameter
Bing-Yen Wang1, Jung-Jyh Hung, Wen-Juei Jeng
1Division of Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Taipei Veterans General Hospital and National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
Background:
The goal of this study was to investigate the prognostic factors and patterns of recurrence in patients with resected non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) < or = 1 cm in diameter.
Methods:
We conducted a retrospective review of the clinicopathological characteristics of 71 patients with NSCLC < or = 1 cm in diameter in Taipei Veterans General Hospital between 1982 and 2007. Overall survival and its predictors were analyzed.
Results:
Median follow-up time of the 71 patients was 33.3 months. Complete resection was performed in 68 patients (95.8%) with stage I disease. The 5- and 10-year overall survival rates of patients who underwent complete resections were 81.7% and 44.9%, respectively. There was tumor recurrence in 6 (8.8%) of these 68 patients. Five (9.3%) of 54 patients who underwent standard resection experienced tumor recurrence, but only 1 (7.1%) of 14 patients who received sublobar resection had recurrent disease. The difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.569). Multivariate analysis revealed that sublobar resection (hazard ratio, 5.00; 95% confidence interval, 1.28-20.00; p = 0.020) was a significant predictor for worse overall survival.
Conclusion:
Survival in patients with NSCLC pound 1 cm in diameter is satisfactory. Sublobar resection, performed in patients unfit for standard resection, is a poor prognostic factor for overall survival.
