Right Lower Lobectomy for Lung Cancer With a Right Top Pulmonary Vein

The right top pulmonary vein (RTPV), a branch of the right superior pulmonary vein, passes behind the bronchus intermedius. Here we describe 2 patients with right lower lobe lung cancer with an RTPV who underwent right lower lobectomy and lower mediastinal nodal dissection, 1 patient with and 1 patient without RTPV preservation. The presence of an RTPV affects the surgical procedures for dissecting the 7 and 11s lymph nodes and separating the interlobar fissure between the upper and lower lobes. Therefore, the decision to preserve an RTPV should be carefully considered on a case-by-case basis.