Medical Health Encyclopedia

Pneumonectomy. Pneumonectomy removes the entire lung. The procedure itself carries a mortality rate of 5% to 8%, with the oldest patients having the greatest risk. In such patients, recurrence almost always occurs.

Other Procedures

Surgical advances are allowing a wider range of options, including minimal surgeries for early cancers and surgical interventions that relieve cancer symptoms for late stages.

Thoracoscopy. Thoracoscopy is a less-invasive technique that employs a thin tube containing a miniature camera and surgical instruments. It requires much smaller incisions than open surgery and speeds recovery to the point that patients are up within hours. Such procedures can have significant drawbacks, though. For instance, one such operation, the thoracoscopic wedge resection, does not allow the surgeon to fully determine the extent of lymph node involvement or the presence of metastatic disease outside of the lung's lobes. When thoracoscopy is used for a lobectomy, it may offer little advantage in reducing postsurgical pain. Thoracoscopies are also difficult to perform and are still considered experimental.

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Laser Surgery. Laser surgeries allow removal of minimal amounts of lung tissue and are proving to useful for improving symptoms in stage II and IIIA patients. They may also be beneficial in treating cancers that have spread to and obstruct the throat.

Photodynamic Therapy. Photodynamic therapy uses bronchoscopy and special laser light beams combined with a photosensitive drug called porfimer sodium (Photofrin) to kill cancer cells. The most common side effect is sun sensitivity. Serious side effects include bleeding in the lungs. Photodynamic therapy may be considered for patients in early-stage disease who are not candidates for other surgical procedures. It may also be used to reduce symptoms in late-stage disease.