Purpose: A serious complication following primary lung cancer surgery on patients with interstitial pneumonia (IP) is the postoperative acute exacerbation of IP. Because few studies have examined the feasibility of using video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) on these patients, we reviewed our experience with this technique.
Methods: We examined 78 patients; 11 had IP (IP group) and 67 did not (non-IP group).
Results: Patients in the IP group were older than those in the non-IP group (p = 0.097), and they had a significantly higher incidence of squamous cell carcinoma than patients in the non-IP group (p = 0.002). Dominating the IP group, though not statistically significant, were males, the intention to undergo VATS, and limited surgery. VATS was performed on 10 lesions in the IP group and on 45 in the non-IP group. No surgery-related exacerbation of preoperative IP or development of postoperative IP was found in either group.
Conclusion: VATS is the preferred surgical choice for lung cancer patients with IP.