[Diagnostic variations among eight pathologists in the histologic classification of lung cancer]

In order to estimate the magnitude of variations among pathologists in histological diagnoses of lung cancer, eight doctors were asked to independently diagnose 73 preparations of the lung (16 biopsied cancers, 27 resected specimens, 21 autopsied specimens and nine benign autopsied cases). The rates of correct diagnoses by the pathologists ranged from 81.7% to 100%, averaging 91.8%. There was no significant difference between the lowest rate and mean or median of the rates. The variation of the diagnosis tended to be more prominent in large cell carcinoma than in adenocarcinoma or small cell and squamous cell carcinoma. It was suggested that the diagnostic criteria for large cell carcinoma varied to some extent among pathologists.