Operative Results of Metastatic Lung Tumor

Operative results of 54 patients with metastatic lung lesions were presented. Primary lesions were; osteogenic sarcoma 10 cases, Grawitz tumor 9 cases, carcinoma of colon and rectum 8 cases, choriocarcinoma 8 cases, breast cancer 3 cases and 16 other malignancies. The overall 5-year survival rate was 52.8% by the Kaplan-Meier method. Those who survived two and half years all survived five years. The five year survival rate for those with metastatic lesions 3.0 cm or less in largest dimension was 74.5% and was significantly better than for those with lesions which were larger than 3 cm. To assess each patient better, a score was introduced which was the sum of the dimensions of each metastatic lesion. This score predicted the patient's survival well. Those who underwent limited resection survived longer than those who underwent lobectomy or pneumonectomy. The number of metastases, the tumor-free interval and the difference in primary lesion failed to predict survival.