Lung cancer staging: what is the actual role of mediastinoscopy?

• Published in: Zentralblatt fur Chirurgie Vol. 137; no. 3; p. 242
• Main Authors: Welter, S, Cheufou, D, Stamatis, G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: German
• Published: Germany 01-06-2012
• Subjects: Combined Modality Therapy; Humans; Lung Neoplasms - drug therapy; Lung Neoplasms - mortality; Lung Neoplasms - pathology; Lymph Node Excision - methods; Mediastinoscopy - methods; Neoadjuvant Therapy; Neoplasm Invasiveness; Neoplasm Staging; Prognosis; Survival Rate
• ISSN: 1438-9592
• DOI: 10.1055/s-0031-1283950

Today several methods for invasive mediastinal staging of lung cancer are available. Whereas mediastinoscopy and anterior mediastinotomy had been the gold standard in every situation several years ago, today EBUS-TBNA has been developed as an alternative to mediastinoscopy concerning the status of lymph node positions 2 L / R, 4 L / R and 7. Actually mediastinoscopy is accepted as the gold standard only in special situations such as negative cytology of suspicious lymph nodes after EBUS-TBNA and mediastinal evaluation after neoadjuvant treatment.