The Oncologist, Vol. 12, No. 10, 1205-1214, October 2007; doi:10.1634/theoncologist.12-10-1205 © 2007 AlphaMed Press
Indications and Developments of Video-Assisted Thoracic Surgery in the Treatment of Lung CanceraDivision of Thoracic Surgery, European Institute of Oncology (IEO), Milan, Italy; bUniversity of Milan, Milan, Italy Key Words. VATS • Video-assisted thoracic surgery • Thoracoscopy • Lung cancer Correspondence: Lorenzo Spaggiari, M.D., Ph.D., University of Milan Faculty of Medicine and Division of Thoracic Surgery, European Institute of Oncology (IEO), Via Ripamonti 435–20141 Milan, Italy. Telephone: 39-2-57489665; Fax: 39-2-57489698; e-mail: lorenzo.spaggiari{at}ieo.it; Website: http://www.ieo.it Disclosure: No potential conflicts of interest were reported by the authors, planners, reviewers, or staff managers of this article.
The term video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) is used to describe a modern minimally invasive surgical technique that nowadays represents a valid alternative to open procedures (i.e., thoracotomy) for many chest diseases. The VATS approach is presently used in many intrathoracic disorders, but while well established in benign chest disease, its role continues to evolve regarding the management of lung cancer. It is currently considered for the evaluation and treatment of suspected (or known) pleural effusion and in the diagnosis of indeterminate pulmonary nodules, and it has a complementary role to standard cervical mediastinoscopy in the invasive staging of mediastinal lymph nodes. It has also become an accepted approach for resection of peripheral early-stage lung cancer (stage I) in many centers worldwide and considerable experience has been accumulated in respect to this field, but absolute indications have yet to be firmly defined. This paper reviews indications and current data regarding minimally invasive approaches for the staging and treatment of lung cancer.
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