When to operate for carcinoma of the lung

Surgical resection remains the accepted treatment of localized carcinoma of the lung. The present means of patient evaluation have made possible accurate tumor staging and have led to an appreciable increase in the rate of resectability. When the tumor is found at operation to be localized to the lung, the patient has a 35% to 50% chance of surviving for five years. This observation makes it imperative that patients with bronchogenic carcinoma be evaluated rapidly and operated on, if indicated, as quickly as possible.