Search

Background Air leak is the most common complication after lung resection and leads to increased length of hospital (LOH) stay or patient discharge with a chest tube. Management by autologous blood patch pleurodesis (ABPP) is controversial because few studies exist, and the technique has yet to be standardized. Methods We retrospectively reviewed patients undergoing ABPP for prolonged air leak (PAL) following lobectomy in three centers, between January 2014 and December 2019. They were divided into two groups: Group A, 120 mL of blood infused; Group B, 60 mL. Propensity score-matched (PSM) analysis was performed, and 23 patients were included in each group. Numbers and success rates of blood patch, time to cessation of air leak, time to chest tube removal, reoperation, LOH, and complications were examined. Univariate and multivariate analysis of variables associated with an increased risk of air leak was performed. Results After the PSM, 120 mL of blood is statistically significant in reducing the number of days before chest tube removal after ABPP (2.78 vs. 4.35), LOH after ABPP (3.78 vs. 10.00), and LOH (8.78 vs. 15.17). Complications (0 vs. 4) and hours until air leak cessation (6.83 vs. 3.91, range 1–13) after ABPP were also statistically different (p < 0.05). Air leaks that persisted for up to 13 hours required another ABPP. No patient had re-operation or long-term complications related to pleurodesis. Conclusion In our experience, 120 mL is the optimal amount of blood and the procedure can be repeated every 24 hours with the chest tube clamped. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The surgical treatment of advanced non-small-cell-lung-cancer (NSCLC) invading mediastinal organs and great vessels is still controversial. The aim of this multicentre study is to analyse oncological outcomes, surgical outcomes and prognostic factors of patients with NSCLC involving heart and great vessels. 362 patients treated surgically for locally advanced T4-NCSLC between 1990 and 2020 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients were divided into five subgroups: pulmonary artery(n = 129), left atrium(n = 82), superior vena cava(n = 80), aorta(n = 43), and multiple vascular structures(n = 28). Resection was complete in 327(90%) patients. Overall 90-day mortality was 8.8%, influenced by poly-transfusions, pneumonectomy, bronchopleural fistula and previous cardiovascular disease (4.5HR.p = 0.03, 3.7HR p = 0.01, 14.0HR.p < 0.001 and 3.0HR p < 0.01). One-, 3- and 5-year survival rates were 75%, 43%, 33%, respectively and there were significant differences among the five groups(p < 0.001). Survival was significantly affected by induction radiotherapy, nodal status, pTNM-stage and radicality (3.8HR p = 0.03, 2.6HR p = 0.001, 1.6HR p < 0.05 and 1.6HR p < 0.05). Surgery provided acceptable results in selected patients with T4-NSCLC with major vascular infiltration in expert centres. Nodal-status and radicality influenced the overall-survival and disease-free survival. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy appears to have a positive effect on long-term results, particularly in N2-patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prolonged air leaks (PAL) complicate 10% to 15% of lung resections, delaying chest tube removal and prolonging length of hospital stay. No consensus exists for managing this common complication, despite favorable results for autologous blood patch pleurodesis (ABPP) in the literature. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of ABPP. We retrospectively reviewed medical records of 510 patients with PAL after lobectomy in four centers between January 2010 and December 2019. They were divided into two groups: group A consisted of patients who received ABPP for PAL of more than 5 days; and group B was patients for whom no ABPP or other procedure was performed for PAL unless strictly necessary. Propensity score matched analysis was performed, and 109 patients were included in each group. Time to cessation of air leak and chest tube removal, length of hospital stay, reoperation, and complications rate were examined. After the propensity score matching, ABPP significantly reduced the number of days before chest tube removal (8.12 vs 9.30, P =.004), and length of hospital stay (10 vs 11 days, P =.045) with fewer perioperative complications (6 vs 17, P =.015). Furthermore, ABPP was related to lower incidence of any additional invasive procedures (0 vs 9, P =.002) and reoperation (0 vs 4, P =.044). No patient in the ABPP group had long-term complications related to pleurodesis. Autologous blood patch pleurodesis is safe and effective in reducing length of hospital stay and leads to earlier chest tube removal without increasing complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stage III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) encompasses a variety of local invasion and nodal involvement and its management is still under debate. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have been shown to improve the survival in metastatic NSCLC, but are far from being accepted as an induction therapy. We retrospectively collected data of all patients who received induction ICIs (nivolumab or pembrolizumab) and chemotherapy (carboplatin with paclitaxel) for stage IIIA-B NSCLC followed by surgery in our unit between January 2019 and March 2020. Of the 12 patients (9 men, 3 women) 6 had a squamous cell carcinoma, 4 had adenocarcinoma, 1 had an undifferentiated adenocarcinoma, and 1 had adeno-squamous carcinoma. Seven patients had stage IIIA disease and 5 had stage IIIB. After induction therapy, 6 patients had stable disease and 6 had a partial response. The median tumor reduction was 3.05 cm (range, 2.30-8.70 cm). All patients, but 1 due to the COVID-19 outbreak, had no delay in surgery. Two patients experienced myelosuppression after induction therapy, 2 had minor adverse effects. Three patients had postoperative complications not related to the induction therapy. All patients had a pathologic response: 5 complete, 4 major, and 3 partial. Eleven patients are alive (mean follow-up, 18.17 ± 4.97 months) and free of disease. Induction ICI chemotherapy may be a valid treatment in patients with locally advanced NSCLC, providing important tumor downstaging and rendering patients operable. In our experience patients had few side effects and a good pathologic response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bronchoplastic procedures have become the reference standard in the lung parenchyma-sparing treatment of centrally located bronchopulmonary tumors. Two schools of thought exist regarding performing a bronchial sleeve resection: those who wrap the anastomosis with a pedicled flap and those who leave the anastomosis unprotected. We performed a study comparing these 2 methods. This study was a retrospective multicenter observational analysis of 90 consecutive patients undergoing bronchial sleeve resections for neoplastic disease between June 2009 and July 2019. Group A (60 patients) underwent bronchial wrapping and group B (30 patients) did not undergo wrapping. The only difference between group A, which had 5 patients (8.3%), and group B, which had 10 patients (33.3%), regarding general characteristics was the presence of diabetes (P =.003). There were no differences in surgical, postoperative, and follow-up characteristics. There was no statistically significant difference between groups (group A, 9 patients [15%]; and group B, 6 patients [20%]) in terms of anastomotic complications at 1 year (P =.425). Diabetes was an independent predictive factor for anastomotic complications at 1 year (P =.035). The number of postoperative complications (P <.001) was an independent risk factor for length of hospital stay. We found no differences between groups in terms of postoperative complications and length of hospital stay, which confirmed previous reports that sleeve resections may be performed safely without bronchial wrapping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sternal resection and reconstruction with cryopreserved allografts provides a safe alternative to traditional methods of anterior chest wall reconstruction. Despite favorable results, successful integration of the graft sternum has never been demonstrated owing to the invasiveness of bone biopsy. We describe our experience of using 18F-sodium fluoride positron emission tomography/computed tomography scans as a noninvasive method of evaluating graft integration. Seven patients underwent surgery and radiologic follow-up. Surgical indications were sternal metastases (n = 5) and sternal dehiscence (n = 2). Sternal reconstruction was performed using a cryopreserved cadaveric sternal allograft fixed in place with titanium plates and screws. Follow-up with 18F-sodium fluoride positron emission tomography/computed tomography scans was performed at 1 and 2 years after surgery. Three patients underwent total sternectomy. Two underwent partial upper sternectomy involving the manubrium, clavicle (1 patient only), and upper sternal body; and 2 had partial sternectomy of the sternal body and xiphoid process. Focal tracer accumulation occurred at the junctions between native bone and graft bone. The median maximum standardized uptake value at 1 year was 16.8 (range, 11.2 to 37.9; interquartile range, 13.6 to 19.4), and at 2 years it was 10.8 (range, 6.1 to 30.2; interquartile range, 8.9 to 15.1). In 6 cases accumulation was lower at the second scan, whereas in 1 patient the accumulation was higher at the second scan. Sternal reconstruction with cryopreserved allograft is safe and well tolerated. The 18F-sodium fluoride positron emission tomography/computed tomography scans are a useful and promising noninvasive method of demonstrating the metabolic activity of the graft and its incorporation into the host skeleton during follow-up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Posterior mediastinal tumors are not infrequent, and among them neurogenic masses and schwannomas are the most common histologic varieties. These benign, initially asymptomatic tumors later become symptomatic as a result of mass effect. Surgical excision is the preferred therapy, and the approach can be determined according to the dimensions of the lesion. This report describes the case of a giant schwannoma originating from the left vagus nerve in a middle-aged woman whose symptoms were exertion-induced dyspnea and atrial fibrillation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The target of our study was to investigate if the size (greater than and less than 1 cm) of ground-glass opacities (GGOs) of adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS) and minimally invasive adenocarcinoma (MIA) of the lung influences the rate of their evolution., Methods: We retrospectively analyzed patients with AIS and MIA who underwent surgery at Shanghai Chest Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University between January 2018 and July 2019, focusing on histopathology, surgical procedure, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations, and computed tomography (CT) images., Results: A total of 224 AIS (n=117) and MIA (n=107) tumors were analyzed. The patients with a tumor diameter <1 cm were distinctly younger than those with tumors >1 cm in size (P<0.001). Pure ground-glass opacities (pGGO) occurred significantly more in patients with nodules <1 cm, while part-solid/mixed ground-glass opacities (mGGO) predominated in patients with nodules >1 cm (P=0.047). There was no significant difference in GGO evolution for GGOs of different sizes. Mutations of EGFR were more common in patients with MIA than in those with AIS (P<0.001)., Conclusions: We found that GGO size and variation (pGGO or mGGO) did not correlate to tumor stability, therefore larger GGOs can undergo standard follow-up protocols to evaluate their evolution over time., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest: All authors have completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form (available at http://dx.doi.org/10.21037/atm-21-1994). The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare., (2021 Annals of Translational Medicine. All rights reserved.)