Surgical Prognosis In Stage-I Bronchogenic-Carcinoma Of The Middle Lobe

A few authors have reported that the outlook after lung resection for primary non-small cell carcinoma is poorer in cases of middle-lobe tumour than in tumours originating at other sites (2, 8). In the only report we have found specifically dealing with prognosis in these middle-lobe tumours, survival was considered to be in the lower range of normal expectation (5). As bronchogenic carcinoma of the middle lobe is rare, however (2, 3, 8), all the mentioned observations were made on groups of fewer than 20 patients, without selection by tumour stage. We wished to contribute to the discussion by evaluating the prognostic implications of middle-lobe malignancy in 31 patients who had undergone radical resection for stage 1(7) non-small cell carcinoma.