download - Malaysian Thoracic Society
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Annual Congress of <strong>Malaysian</strong> <strong>Thoracic</strong> <strong>Society</strong><br />
Symposium 2A<br />
Lung Cancer<br />
The impact of new imaging and endoscopic techniques in<br />
lung cancer staging<br />
Liam Chong Kin<br />
Malaysia<br />
The stage of lung cancer is determined by the size and local invasion of the primary tumour (T1-4); whether<br />
the ipsilateral hilar (N1) and mediastinal lymph nodes (N2), contralateral hilar or mediastinal nodes (N3),<br />
or supraclavicular nodes (N3) are involved; and whether intrathoracic (M1a) or distant metastases (M1b)<br />
are present. For staging, all patients should undergo computed tomography (CT) of the thorax and upper<br />
abdomen to include the liver and adrenals. Patients with signs and symptoms of systemic metastases<br />
(eg, fatigue, weight loss, poor appetite, neurological signs and symptoms, bone pain) must be verified by<br />
imaging tests such as a brain CT or MRI and a bone scan. An exception to this approach is patients with<br />
fairly obvious metastases in whom this can be confirmed by a biopsy of a metastatic site or by a skeletal plain<br />
radiograph alone.<br />
FDG-PET is more accurate than CT for the evaluation of mediastinal involvement, offering a high negative<br />
predictive value. It can detect occult metastases in 11% of patients, although the aetiology of the extrathoracic<br />
isolated uptakes needs confirmation. The role of PET imaging is limited in patients with strong clinical signs of<br />
metastatic disease. A positive PET result in the mediastinum should be confirmed by biopsy because the false<br />
positive rate is 15 to 20%. It is unclear and controversial whether a mediastinal biopsy is needed in patients<br />
with clinical stage II lung cancer who have no PET uptake in the mediastinum. In patients with a peripheral<br />
clinical stage I lung cancer, it is reasonable not to order a PET scan for staging because the chances of finding<br />
either distant metastases or mediastinal involvement on PET imaging are quite low.<br />
Endoscopic techniques are accurate minimally invasive techniques mostly used to confirm a PET-positive<br />
finding but not for complete mediastinal staging. Endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial/transtracheal<br />
needle aspiration (TBNA) (EBUS-TBNA) allows real-time controlled tissue sampling of paratracheal,<br />
subcarinal, and hilar lymph nodes. Mediastinal lymph nodes located adjacent to the esophagus can be<br />
assessed by esophageal ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration (EUS-FNA). Owing to the complementary<br />
reach of EBUS-TBNA and EUS-FNA in assessing different regions of the mediastinum, complete and accurate<br />
mediastinal staging can be achieved by the combination of both procedures. Mediastinoscopy is an invasive<br />
technique which provides a complete staging of the upper mediastinum. Implementation of minimally invasive<br />
endoscopic methods of EBUS-TBNA and EUS-FNA reduces the need for surgical staging of lung cancer.<br />
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