Segmentectomy vs. Lobectomy in stage IA non-small cell lung cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis of perioperative and survival outcomes

•Meta-analysis includes data from over 100,000 patients across multiple studies.•High heterogeneity was observed in outcomes across non-RCT studies analysed.•Segmentectomy shows comparable overall survival to lobectomy in early-stage NSCLC.•Findings support tailored surgical approaches based on patient-specific factors. While recent randomized controlled trials (RCT) have suggested superior overall survival (OS) outcomes with segmentectomy over lobectomy, questions remain regarding the comparability of these surgical procedures for treating early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to synthetize existing evidence and to compare the survival outcomes observed for stage IA NSCLC following segmentectomy or lobectomy. 40 studies (38 observational, 2 RCTs) encompassing 103,926 patients were analyzed. Primary outcomes included overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), local recurrences, harvested lymph nodes, postoperative morbidity, and length of hospital stay. Risk of bias was assessed using established tools, and evidence certainty was evaluated using GRADE. Non-RCTs showed an OS HR of 1.10 (95 % CI: 0.94–1.30, p = 0.24) with low certainty, contrasting with RCTs’ HR of 0.82 (95 % CI: 0.66–1.02, p = 0.7) with moderate certainty. Local recurrences exhibited OR 1.40 (95 % CI: 0.94–2.08, p = 0.09) in non-RCTs with low certainty, and RR 1.61 (95 % CI: 1.12–2.31, p = 0.01) in RCTs with low certainty. Non-RCTs showed DFS HR 1.13 (95 % CI: 0.95–1.34, p = 0.18) with low certainty, while RCTs yielded HR 1.00 (95 % CI: 0.85–1.18, p = 0.97) with moderate certainty. Lobectomy resulted in more harvested lymph nodes. Postoperative morbidity and length of hospital stay did not differ significantly. While definitive evidence for OS, DFS, and postoperative outcomes differences was inconclusive, a potential increase in local recurrences following lobectomy was noted. Further well-designed studies are warranted to enhance evidence and inform clinical practice in stage I lung cancer surgery.