Sleeve Lobectomy in Lung Cancer

Pulmonary sleeve resection complications and management

In tumors involving the central airway or vascular structures, achieving local control and preserving pulmonary function can be possible with a pulmonary sleeve resection. In this section, complications and management of pulmonary sleeve resections are discussed.

Two-stage S7 sleeve resection of the right lower lobe and S1+2 and S3 segmentectomy of the left upper lobe: a case report

Synchronous multiple nodules in the lungs, such as peripheral ground-glass opacities (GGOs) and solid small nodules, are common, but only lesions suspected of being malignant should be surgically removed. The surgical strategy is anatomical sub-lobectomy in early stage of non-small cell lung cancer synchronously or asynchronously to decrease the impact of lung resection on the lung function. Here, we report a case of a 56-year-old man, who was a pack-a-day smoker, with endobronchial hamartomas the medial basal bronchus (B7). The patient underwent sleeve resection of the medial basal segment in the right lower lobe, followed by S¹⁺² and S³ segmentectomy because of early-stage lung adenocarcinoma (T1a), which presented as mixed GGOs located in the left upper lobe. The performance of S⁷ sleeve segmentectomy of the RLL is very rare. The main concern is stenosis of the anastomosis and the major technical striking point is the caliber discrepancy between proximal and distal bronchi. In our experiences, we used high-tech methods as three-dimensional reconstruction to provide a basis for our surgical planning and proper patient selection and a series of preventing measures taken for anastomotic stenosis, successfully avoided complications. This case provides a new strategy for the treatment of patient with multiple early-stage lung cancer and benign endobronchial tumors, simultaneously.

Specific techniques for right sleeve lower lobectomy: four case reports

Background

Right sleeve lower lobectomy is rarely performed because pulmonary function of the middle lobe is not spared to the extent of the other lobes and achieving a proper bronchial anastomosis is technically more difficult than other sleeve lobectomies.

Case presentation

We performed four right sleeve lower lobectomies and had good clinical outcomes using specific technical options, such as telescope anastomosing, pericardiotomy, interlobar dissection between the upper and middle lobes, and angioplasty of the lower pulmonary artery, if needed.

Conclusions

The cases presented herein demonstrated that a right sleeve lower lobectomy is one option by which to preserve the middle lobe using specific techniques and is thus recommended in select patients.

Successful Treatment of Bronchial Obstruction After Lobectomy in a Patient With Scoliosis

Scoliosis can cause various respiratory complications, even in the natural course, because of rearrangement of the intrathoracic anatomy owing to chest wall deformity. We experienced a patient with scoliosis who developed acute respiratory failure owing to bronchial obstruction induced by bronchial compression by the dorsal thoracic vertebra after right upper lobectomy for cancer. The symptom resolved after mobilization of the ipsilateral lower lobe, which was achieved by releasing the inferior pulmonary vein by U-shaped pericardial dissection with division of the pulmonary ligament. When planning lobectomy for patients with severe scoliosis, the anatomic changes caused by pulmonary resection must be considered.

For non-small cell lung cancer with T3 (central) disease, sleeve lobectomy or pneumonectomy?

BACKGROUND

Pneumonectomy (PN) has traditionally been the treatment of choice for central lung tumors for which the alternative is sleeve lobectomy (SL). The aim of this study was to compare early and long-term results after SL and PN in focusing on T3 central non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

METHODS

Patients who underwent SL (n=58) or PN (n=42) were retrospectively analyzed. For bias reduction, these 100 patients had been selected according to the following criteria: (I) tumor located in the main bronchus less than 2 cm distal to the carina; (II) there were no N2 disease; (III) no induction therapy was applied; (IV) complete resection (R0) was achieved.

RESULTS

SL and PN patients had comparable mean ages, gender distribution, mean forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), stage and tumor grade. Postoperative mortality (3.4% vs. 4.8%, P=1.0) and morbidity (41% vs. 38%, P=0.74) were similar between the two groups. Recurrences occurred in 48% of patients after SL and in 31% of those after PN (P=0.08). The 5-year survival after SL (64.8%) and PN (61.4%) was not significantly different (P=0.20). Multivariable survival analysis showed that there were no independent prognostic factors.

CONCLUSIONS

SL does not compromise survival for NSCLC with T3 central disease compared with PN. It is an adequate oncologic resection and should be treated as the first line intervention whenever complete resection can be achieved.

Sleeve Right Lower Lobectomy: a Rarely Performed Extended Resection

Sleeve resection is a valid option in the surgical treatment of lung tumors, avoiding large resection. To ensure a good functional result and avoid post-operative complications like recent broncho-pleural fistulas and long-term stenosis, anastomosis between bronchi must be well performed. We report two cases of sleeve resection of the right lower lobe and show how we managed caliber discrepancy between the middle lobe bronchus and the truncus intermedius.

INITIAL EXPERIENCE OF THORACOSCOPIC LOBECTOMY PERFORMANCE WITH BRONCHOPLASTY

The article presents an initial Russian experience of video-thoracoscopic bronchoplastic lobectomies performed in 2 clinical cases of centric lung tumors. The upper bronchoplastic lobectomies with right lymphodissection were carried out on two patients in 2012. Complications weren’t observed in intraoperative and postoperative periods. There wasn’t relapse during two years after operation. Thus, the authors came to conclusion that thoracoscopic bronchoplastic lobectomies turned out to be safe and effective interventions in individual patients with centric tumor location, which wasn’t extended outside mouth of the lobar bronchus. The choice of candidates for thoracoscopic bronchoplasty was made using video-bronchoscopy, angio-computer tomography of the thorax and PET. This allowed avoiding an invasive staging and excluded patients with substantial extra-bronchial lesions.

Video-assisted thoracic bronchial sleeve lobectomy with bronchoplasty for treatment of lung cancer confined to a single lung lobe: a case series of Chinese patients

Background

The outcomes of video-assisted thoracic bronchial sleeve lobectomy (VABSL), a minimally invasive video-assisted thoracoscopic (VATS) lobectomy, are mostly unknown in Chinese patients.

Objectives

To investigate operative and postoperative outcomes of VABSL in a cases series of Chinese patients with lung cancer.

Methods

Retrospective study of 9 patients (male:female 8:1; mean age 59.4 ± 17.6 years, ranging 21–79 years) diagnosed with lung cancer of a single lobe, treated with VABSL between March 2009 and November 2011, and followed up for at least 2 months (mean follow-up: 14.17 ± 12.91 months). Operative outcomes (tumor size, operation time, estimated blood loss and blood transfusion), postoperative outcomes (intensive care unit [ICU] stay, hospitalization length and pathological tumor stage), death, tumor recurrence and safety were assessed.

Results

Patients were diagnosed with carcinoid cancer (11.1%), squamous carcinoma (66.7%) or small cell carcinoma (22.2%), affecting the right (77.8%) or left (22.2%) lung lobes in the upper (55.6%), middle (11.1%) or lower (33.3%) regions. TNM stages were T2 (88.9%) or T3 (11.1%); N0 (66.7%), N1 (11.1%) or N2 (22.2%); and M0 (100%). No patient required conversion to thoracotomy. Mean tumor size, operation time and blood loss were 2.50 ± 0.75 cm, 203 ± 20 min and 390 ± 206 ml, respectively. Patients were treated in the ICU for 18.7 ± 0.7 hours, and overall hospitalization duration was 20.8 ± 2.0 days. No deaths, recurrences or severe complications were reported.

Conclusions

VABSL surgery is safe and effective for treatment of lung cancer by experienced physicians, warranting wider implementation of VABSL and VATS training in China.

Treatment of stage I and II non-small cell lung cancer: Diagnosis and management of lung cancer, 3rd ed: American College of Chest Physicians evidence-based clinical practice guidelines

BACKGROUND

The treatment of stage I and II non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in patients with good or low surgical risk is primarily surgical resection. However, this area is undergoing many changes. With a greater prevalence of CT imaging, many lung cancers are being found that are small or constitute primarily ground-glass opacities. Treatment such as sublobar resection and nonsurgical approaches such as stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) are being explored. With the advent of minimally invasive resections, the criteria to classify a patient as too ill to undergo an anatomic lung resection are being redefined.

METHODS

The writing panel selected topics for review based on clinical relevance to treatment of early-stage lung cancer and the amount and quality of data available for analysis and relative controversy on best approaches in stage I and II NSCLC: general surgical care vs specialist care; sublobar vs lobar surgical approaches to stage I lung cancer; video-assisted thoracic surgery vs open resection; mediastinal lymph node sampling vs lymphadenectomy at the time of surgical resection; the use of radiation therapy, with a focus on SBRT, for primary treatment of early-stage NSCLC in high-risk or medically inoperable patients as well as adjuvant radiation therapy in the sublobar and lobar resection settings; adjuvant chemotherapy for early-stage NSCLC; and the impact of ethnicity, geography, and socioeconomic status on lung cancer survival. Recommendations by the writing committee were based on an evidence-based review of the literature and in accordance with the approach described by the Guidelines Oversight Committee of the American College of Chest Physicians.

RESULTS

Surgical resection remains the primary and preferred approach to the treatment of stage I and II NSCLC. Lobectomy or greater resection remains the preferred approach to T1b and larger tumors. The use of sublobar resection for T1a tumors and the application of adjuvant radiation therapy in this group are being actively studied in large clinical trials. Every patient should have systematic mediastinal lymph node sampling at the time of curative intent surgical resection, and mediastinal lymphadenectomy can be performed without increased morbidity. Perioperative morbidity and mortality are reduced and long-term survival is improved when surgical resection is performed by a board-certified thoracic surgeon. The use of adjuvant chemotherapy for stage II NSCLC is recommended and has shown benefit. The use of adjuvant radiation or chemotherapy for stage I NSCLC is of unproven benefit. Primary radiation therapy remains the primary curative intent approach for patients who refuse surgical resection or are determined by a multidisciplinary team to be inoperable. There is growing evidence that SBRT provides greater local control than standard radiation therapy for high-risk and medically inoperable patients with NSCLC. The role of ablative therapies in the treatment of high-risk patients with stage I NSCLC is evolving. Radiofrequency ablation, the most studied of the ablative modalities, has been used effectively in medically inoperable patients with small (< 3 cm) peripheral NSCLC that are clinical stage I.

Long-term results of sleeve lobectomy in the management of non-small cell lung carcinoma and low-grade neoplasms

BACKGROUND

The objective of this study was to evaluate the operative mortality, morbidity, and long-term survival of sleeve lobectomy for non-small cell lung cancer and low-grade neoplasms. We evaluated the effects of neoadjuvant therapy on the bronchial anastomotic complication rate and determined whether sleeve lobectomy performed in patients with N1 disease resulted in decreased overall survival.

METHODS

This study is a retrospective review of 196 patients who underwent sleeve lobectomy. One hundred twenty-five patients had non-small cell lung cancer. There were 117 men (59.7%) and 79 women (40.3%) with a mean age of 54 years. Sixteen patients (13%) received neoadjuvant therapy. Fifty-six patients with N1 disease underwent sleeve lobectomy.

RESULTS

There were 4 (2.0%) postoperative deaths. The postoperative morbidity rate was 36.7%. Four patients (2.0%) experienced bronchopleural fistulas. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that age older than 70 years (p = 0.02) and the diagnosis of non-small cell lung cancer (p = 0.0002) were risk factors for postoperative complications. Multivariate analysis also demonstrated that neoadjuvant therapy predicted anastomotic complications (p = 0.01). For non-small cell lung cancer patients, the 5-year survival rate was 44%. The 5-year survival rates for patients with pathologic N0 disease and N1 disease were 52.6% versus 39.3%, respectively (p = 0.205).

CONCLUSIONS

Sleeve lobectomy can be performed with minimal bronchial anastomotic complications and low postoperative mortality. In our study, neoadjuvant therapy for non-small cell lung cancer adversely influenced the rate of anastomotic complications. Performing sleeve lobectomy for patients with N1 disease was not associated with decreased overall survival rates.