[Surgical treatment of pulmonary metastases (author's transl)]

120 pulmonary metastases were resected in 67 patients. The five year survival rate is 42.3% after surgical removal and only 2.6% without surgery. Up to 4 resected pulmonary metastases have no influence on the prognosis. In cases with several metastases resection should be strictly limited. Lobectomy had the best five year survival rate (58%); wedge excision and pneumonectomy fared clearly worse (25% each). When the lung is the first filtre of haematogenous metastases the five year survival rate is better (48%) than when the liver filters first (18.5%). A prolonged interval before recurrence improves prognosis. Intervals of less than a year lead to survival after 4 years in only 14.5%, intervals of more than two years are accompanied by survival of 65%.