Current Concepts in the Surgical Management of Carcinoma of the Lung

¹ Raymond Professor, Department of Surgery, University of Chicago

1. Early recognition and early application of presently available therapeutic methods will increase long-term survival in primary carcinoma of the lung.

2. The "brush test" developed by Dr. John J. Fennessy has been found most helpful in establishing a positive diagnosis when all other methods failed.

3. In the absence of a positive diagnosis, exploratory thoracotomy should be made unless calcium is present in orderly expanding rings indicating the diagnosis of a granuloma.

4. In selected peripherally located lesions, lobectomy is the operation of choice and has yielded good results (50 per cent five-year survivals) in the absence of positive nodes outside of the lobe removed.

5. Preoperative adjuvant x-ray therapy may prove to be of value in selected patients.