Results of surgical treatment in Stage I lung cancer

One hundred fifteen patients underwent resection for Stage I non-oat cell carcinoma of the lung. Each of these patients was evaluated carefully for extent of disease and classified as having a Stage I cancer only after the resected specimen was reviewed histologically and all regional nodes in the mediastinum were assessed. There were no deaths following operation. At 1 year of follow-up 75 of 81 patients (93 percent) were alive, and at 3 years, 77 percent were alive and free of disease. No patient had local recurrence and none was lost to follow-up. Patient with correctly staged early lung cancers have an excellent survival rate at 2 and 3 years with surgery alone. Merits of various adjuvant programs in this group of patients can be assessed correctly only if follow-up periods are prolonged and the numbers of patients evaluated are large.