Authors: Yue Yuan Tsuneo Matsumoto Atsuto Hiyama Goji Miura Nobuyuki Tanaka Takuya Emoto Takeo Kawamura Naofumi Matsunaga
Publish Date: 2003/05/21
Volume: 13, Issue: 11, Pages: 2447-2453
Abstract
The aim of this study was to assess the probability of malignancy in one or two small nodules 1 cm or less coexisting with potentially operable lung cancer coexisting small nodules The preoperative helical CT scans of 223 patients with lung cancer were retrospectively reviewed The probability of malignancy of coexisting small nodules was evaluated based on nodule size location and clinical stage of the primary lung cancers Seventyone coexisting small nodules were found on conventional CT in 58 26 of 223 patients and 14 6 patients had malignant nodules Eighteen 25 of such nodules were malignant The probability of malignancy was not significantly different between two groups of nodules larger and smaller than 05 cm p=01 The probability of malignancy of such nodules within primary tumor lobe was significantly higher than that in the other lobes p001 Metastatic nodules were significantly fewer in clinical stageIA patients than in the patients with the other stage p001 however four 57 of seven synchronous lung cancers were located in the nonprimary tumor lobes in the clinical stageI patients Malignant coexisting small nodules are not infrequent and such nodules in the nonprimary tumor lobes should be carefully diagnosed
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