Matthew Callister

British Thoracic Society guidelines for the investigation and management of pulmonary nodules.

The British Thoracic Society guideline for the investigation and management of pulmonary nodules is published as a supplement to this edition of the journal. It provides recommendations for the management of an individual with single or multiple pulmonary nodules and is a comprehensive reference text.

British Thoracic Society guidelines for the investigation and management of pulmonary nodules: accredited by NICE

This guideline is based on a comprehensive review of the literature on pulmonary nodules and expert opinion. Although the management pathway for the majority of nodules detected is straightforward it is sometimes more complex and this is helped by the inclusion of detailed and specific recommendations and the 4 management algorithms below. The Guideline Development Group (GDG) wanted to highlight the new research evidence which has led to significant changes in management recommendations from previously published guidelines. These include the use of two malignancy prediction calculators (section ‘Initial assessment of the probability of malignancy in pulmonary nodules’, algorithm 1) to better characterise risk of malignancy. There are recommendations for a higher nodule size threshold for follow-up (≥5 mm or ≥80 mm3) and a reduction of the follow-up period to 1 year for solid pulmonary nodules; both of these will reduce the number of follow-up CT scans (sections ‘Initial assessment of the probability of malignancy in pulmonary nodules’ and ‘Imaging follow-up’, algorithms 1 and 2). Volumetry is recommended as the preferred measurement method and there are recommendations for the management of nodules with extended volume doubling times (section ‘Imaging follow-up’, algorithm 2). Acknowledging the good prognosis of sub-solid nodules (SSNs), there are recommendations for less aggressive options for their management (section ‘Management of SSNs’, algorithm 3). The guidelines provide more clarity in the use of further imaging, with ordinal scale reporting for PET-CT recommended to facilitate incorporation into risk models (section ‘Further imaging in management of pulmonary nodules’) and more clarity about the place of biopsy (section ‘Non-imaging tests and non-surgical biopsy’, algorithm 4). There are recommendations for the threshold for treatment without histological confirmation (sections ‘Surgical excision biopsy’ and ‘Non-surgical treatment without pathological confirmation of malignancy’, algorithm 4). Finally, and possibly most importantly, there are evidence-based recommendations about the information that people …

Risk of malignancy in pulmonary nodules: A validation study of four prediction models

OBJECTIVES Clinical prediction models assess the likelihood of malignancy in pulmonary nodules detected by computed tomography (CT). This study aimed to validate four such models in a UK population of patients with pulmonary nodules. Three models used clinical and CT characteristics to predict risk (Mayo Clinic, Veterans Association, Brock University) with a fourth model (Herder et al. [4]) additionally incorporating (18)Fluorine-Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) avidity on positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT). MATERIALS AND METHODS The likelihood of malignancy was calculated for patients with pulmonary nodules (4-30mm diameter) and data used to calculate the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) for each model. The models were used in a restricted cohort of patients based on each models exclusion criteria and in the total cohort of all patients. RESULTS Two hundred and forty-four patients were studied, of whom 139 underwent FDG PET-CT. Ninety-nine (40.6%) patients were subsequently confirmed to have malignant nodules (33.2% primary lung cancer, 7.4% metastatic disease). The Mayo and Brock models performed similarly (AUC 0.895 and 0.902 respectively) and both were significantly better than the Veterans Association model (AUC 0.735, p<0.001 and p=0.002 respectively). In patients undergoing FDG PET-CT, the Herder model had significantly higher accuracy than the other three models (AUC 0.924). When the models were tested on all patients in the cohort (i.e. including those outside the original model inclusion criteria) AUC values were reduced, yet remained high especially for the Herder model (AUC 0.916). For sub-centimetre nodules, AUC values for the Mayo and Brock models were 0.788 and 0.852 respectively. CONCLUSIONS The Mayo and Brock models showed good accuracy for determining likelihood of malignancy in nodules detected on CT scan. In patients undergoing FDG PET-CT for nodule evaluation, the highest accuracy was seen for the model described by Herder et al. incorporating FDG avidity.

Endobronchial ultrasound guided transbronchial needle aspiration of mediastinal lymph nodes for lung cancer staging: a projected cost analysis

Endobronchial ultrasound guided-transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) of mediastinal lymph nodes provides a safe alternative to mediastinoscopy for staging patients with lung cancer.1–5 Performing TBNA under real time ultrasound visualisation has been shown to significantly improve the yield of TBNA compared with conventional TBNA performed without visualisation.6 In addition to the clinical benefits of this procedure, EBUS-TBNA is likely to offer ongoing cost savings by avoiding the need for mediastinoscopy procedures and positron emission topography (PET) scans in some patients. At Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (LTHT), conventional TBNA is used to assess large subcarinal nodes, but the Trust does not currently offer an EBUS-TBNA service. By reviewing mediastinoscopies performed as staging procedures for lung cancer in LTHT during 2006, we estimated the financial implications of establishing an EBUS-TBNA service. We hypothesised that patients found to have …

European position statement on lung cancer screening

Lung cancer screening with low-dose CT can save lives. This European Union (EU) position statement presents the available evidence and the major issues that need to be addressed to ensure the successful implementation of low-dose CT lung cancer screening in Europe. This statement identified specific actions required by the European lung cancer screening community to adopt before the implementation of low-dose CT lung cancer screening. This position statement recommends the following actions: a risk stratification approach should be used for future lung cancer low-dose CT programmes; that individuals who enter screening programmes should be provided with information on the benefits and harms of screening, and smoking cessation should be offered to all current smokers; that management of detected solid nodules should use semi-automatically measured volume and volume-doubling time; that national quality assurance boards should be set up to oversee technical standards; that a lung nodule management pathway should be established and incorporated into clinical practice with a tailored screening approach; that non-calcified baseline lung nodules greater than 300 mm3, and new lung nodules greater than 200 mm3, should be managed in multidisciplinary teams according to this EU position statement recommendations to ensure that patients receive the most appropriate treatment; and planning for implementation of low-dose CT screening should start throughout Europe as soon as possible. European countries need to set a timeline for implementing lung cancer screening.

Clinical management of older people with non-small cell lung cancer in England

Data for 25261 patients with non-small cell lung cancer whose details were submitted to the National Lung Cancer Audit in England were analysed to assess the effect of age at diagnosis on their clinical management, after accounting for sex, stage, performance status and comorbidity. Multivariate logistic regression showed the odds of having histocytological confirmation and anticancer treatment decreased progressively with age, and was also lower in women. It is likely that these results have a multifactorial explanation, and further research into the attitudes of patients, carers and healthcare professionals, and clinical trials of treatment in older populations, are necessary.

Occult Nodal Disease in Patients With Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer Who are Suitable for Stereotactic Ablative Body Radiation

INTRODUCTION Stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy is a therapeutic option for patients with peripheral stage I NSCLC in whom surgical resection is considered high risk. Patients receiving SABR do not undergo systematic nodal dissection and any occult nodal metastases will therefore go undetected. Our aim was to determine what proportion of cases this might represent. MATERIALS AND METHODS We retrospectively studied patients who underwent lung resections for presumed stage I NSCLC between 2008 and 2011 at a United Kingdom teaching hospital. We reviewed postoperative pathological lymph node staging and analyzed a subset of these patients in whom SABR would have been be technically possible. RESULTS We reviewed 128 cases of presumed NSCLC preoperatively staged as T1/2a N0 M0. Of 89 cases with peripheral tumor location, 8 patients (8.9%) had nodal involvement at surgical resection. CONCLUSION Our data show that approximately 1 in 11 patients with peripheral stage I NSCLC will have occult mediastinal/hilar nodal involvement. Although this is a relatively small proportion, routine use of EBUS-TBNA for nodal staging in patients undergoing SABR might identify a greater proportion of patients with nodal disease compared with a strategy of nodal staging directed according to positron emission tomography-computed tomography findings.

How should pulmonary nodules be optimally investigated and managed

Pulmonary nodules are a common incidental finding on CT and the inexorable rise in the use of CT (10% increase per year in the UK over the last decade) means that the frequency of their detection is likely to increase over coming years. This may be augmented further if CT screening is implemented. Management has previously been influenced by North American guidelines, with the most widely used resource to date being the Fleischner Society guidelines published in 2005. These predominantly focus on the timing of CT scans arranged to survey small pulmonary nodules (≤ 8 mm), and the guideline authors chose not to offer specific recommendations regarding larger nodules. More recently, the society published specific guidelines for sub-solid nodules, reflecting the different prognosis that this subtype of nodules confers. The American College of Chest Physicians have published two guidelines on pulmonary nodules-the latest was completed in 2012 and published in Chest the following year. However, the investigation and management of pulmonary nodules is a rapidly evolving subject largely driven by evidence from the large CT screening studies. In 2012, The British Thoracic Society (BTS) convened a guideline development group to address the topic of pulmonary nodule investigation and management, with publication of the guideline in July 2015. One third of the 359 references included in the guideline date from 2012 onwards, and many of the differences between the recommendations made and previous guideline recommendations reflect this recent evidence. This article reviews specific evidence considered in formulating the BTS guidelines, and summarises the main guideline recommendations.

What is the Optimum Screening Strategy for the Early Detection of Lung Cancer.

Early diagnosis of lung cancer is currently the most effective way of reducing lung cancer mortality other than quitting smoking because the treatment of late stage disease has little impact. Improving the awareness of the risk of lung cancer and warning symptoms, recognition and prompt referral, and screening with low dose computed tomography (LDCT) are potential ways to improve early diagnosis. Currently the evidence is strongest for LDCT, where one large trial, the US National Lung Screening Trial (NLST), showed a 20% relative reduction in lung cancer-related mortality and a 6.7% reduction in all-cause mortality in patients who had LDCT compared with chest X-ray. Although many questions remain about optimal methodology and cost-effectiveness, lung cancer screening is now being implemented in the USA using the NLST screening criteria. Many of these questions are being answered by on-going European trials that are reporting their findings. Here we review the research evidence for LDCT screening and explore the important issues that need to be addressed to optimise effectiveness.

Factors affecting hospital costs in lung cancer patients in the United Kingdom

INTRODUCTION Rising healthcare costs and financial constraints are increasing pressure on healthcare budgets. There is little published data on the healthcare costs of lung cancer in the UK, with international studies mostly small and limited by data collection methods. Accurate assessment of healthcare costs is essential for effective service planning. METHODS We conducted a retrospective, descriptive cohort study linking clinical data from a local electronic database of lung cancer patients at a large UK teaching hospital with recorded hospital income. Costs were adjusted to 2013-2014 prices. RESULTS The study analysed secondary care costs of 3274 patients. Mean cumulative costs were £5852 (95% CI, £5694 to £6027) at 90 days and £10,009 (95% CI, £9717 to £10,278) at one year. The majority of costs (58.5%) were accumulated within the first 90 days, with acute inpatient costs the largest contributor at one year (42.1%). The strongest predictor of costs was active treatment, especially surgery. Costs were also affected by age, route to diagnosis, clinical stage and cell type. DISCUSSION Successful early diagnosis initiatives that increase radical treatment rates and improve outcomes may significantly increase the secondary care costs of lung cancer management. The use of routine NHS clinical and financial data can enable efficient and effective analyses of large cohort health economic data.