Extensive surgery including partial hepatectomy for advanced lung cancer ; a case report

A 62-year-old male was admitted to our hospital complaining of right sided chest pain on Oct. 16, 1991. He was found to have adenocarcinoma of the right B8, involving the right lateral chest wall, the diaphragm and upper surface of the liver. Surgery was performed on Nov. 5, 1991. The right middle and lower lobes, the right lateral chest wall (ribs 7-10), the right side of the diaphragm and the upper part of the liver were resected. The cut surface of the liver was coated with fibrin glue, closed with sutures, and covered with a Teflon sheet to prevent leakage of bile and blood. The diaphragm was reconstructed with Teflon sheet and the thoracic wall with Marlex polyethylene mesh. Although, many reports have demonstrated that reduction surgery provides no improvement in the prognosis of patients with advanced lung cancer, extensive operations with pre-and postoperative adjuvant therapy occasionally improve the survival rate. We think it is important for surgeons to attempt relative curative resection in cases of advanced lung cancer when there is no other effective therapy.