Increased number of cancer cells in bronchial washing fluid detected by combining conventional cytology and high-resolution flow cytometry

Diagnóstico e estadiamento do câncer de pulmão

O câncer do pulmão pode apresentar-se sob diversas formas e vários são os meios de diagnosticá-lo. A escolha do melhor método para o seu diagnóstico depende de diferentes aspectos relacionados ao tumor, ao paciente e à habilidade da equipe médica. Dentre os métodos mais comumente utilizados para o diagnóstico do câncer do pulmão, podemos contar, além dos exames radiológicos, que não serão abordados neste artigo, a citologia do escarro, a broncofibroscopia, a punção aspirativa transtorácica e a toracoscopia, entre outros. O estadiamento reflete a extensão anatômica do câncer. As regras de estadiamento propostas por Denoix foram adaptadas de maneira satisfatória para o câncer do pulmão e, embora tenham sofrido diversas modificações, devidas ao avanço tecnológico dos métodos de diagnóstico, são importantes para orientar o tratamento e estimar o prognóstico. Com o advento de novas modalidades de tratamento, principalmente as combinadas, o estadiamento tende a assumir importância cada vez maior, tanto na escolha da modalidade terapêutica mais adequada quanto na comparação dos resultados.

Future of flexible bronchoscopy

Despite some potential "threats" (Table 3), the future of bronchoscopy is likely full with ever expanding applications in clinical medicine and research (Tables 1 and 2). The role of bronchoscopy in lung cancer continues to expand and the usefulness of newer techniques needs to be established. The role of FB is also ever expanding in the immuno compromised host and critically ill patients. Future studies, however, should concentrate on patient outcome, especially survival and performance status. Therapeutic bronchoscopy has been extended to many areas and the emphasis of future research will likely continue to be at the molecular level rather than on studies of better instruments for retrieval purposes. The most exciting developments are likely to be in the field of gene therapy, which has made remarkable progress in the past decade. Gene therapy can be a powerful technology, but several hurdles must be overcome to make gene therapy a reality for treating human disease in the future. As the cost of technology continues to challenge health care delivery systems, a major challenge for the future of bronchoscopy is to evaluate new technologies and applications based on their impact on patient outcome, survival, and management of cost.