Trial to Organize Hospitals and Clinics in the Local Community for the Early Detection of Lung Cancer

For the early detection of lung cancer, we have tried to organize 7 hospitals and 16 clinics in the local community into one medical network system. All chest roentgenograms were sent to our group which specializes lung cancer, and examined by us. When lung cancer was detected, internists and surgeons decided the course of therapy of the case jointly. From April 1977 to December 1989 we studied 211 patients with resected primary lung cancer. Of these, 90 cases (42.6%) were over 70 years old, while of 195 primary lung carcinomas, 112 patients (59%) revealed postoperativestage I. The histologic type was adenocarcinoma in 104 patients (49%) of the total. Asymptomatic patients consisted of 62%. The 5-year survival rate of absolutely and relatively curative resections were 65% and 21% respectively, and that of all cases was 46%. The medical network system of the hospitals and clinics in the local community is considered to yield better results concerning the early detection and treatment of lung cancer.