Mediastinal Staging: Endosonographic Ultrasound Lymph Node Biopsy or Mediastinoscopy

Combined endosonographic lymph node biopsy techniques are a minimally invasive alternative to surgical staging in non-small cell lung cancer and may be superior to standard mediastinoscopy and surgical mediastinal staging techniques. Endosonography allows for the biopsy of lymph nodes and metastases unattainable with standard mediastinoscopy. Standard cervical mediastinoscopy is an invasive procedure, which requires general anesthesia and is associated with higher risk, cost, and major complication rates compared with minimally invasive endosonographic biopsy techniques. Combined endosonographic procedures are the new gold standard in staging of non-small cell lung cancer when performed by an experienced operator.