Paradoxical position of vertebral veins in cancer carriage

A new era dawned in 1940 when Batson published the theory that the vertebral venous system plays an important role in cancer carriage. He emphasized that this route comes into play with any natural movement such as coughing. Now, cough is a prominent feature of lung cancer. Therefore, this tumor is optimally positioned for utilizing the vertebral venous route of spread. However, when three major distribution patterns of lung cancer are examined critically, expectations from Batson's theory are not confirmed. If this paradox is recognized and explained, the prospects for solving the mysteries of human cancer metastasis will probably improve.