PREOPERATIVE STAGING OF NONSMALL CELL LUNG-CANCER - TRANSESOPHAGEAL US-GUIDED FINE-NEEDLE ASPIRATION BIOPSY OF MEDIASTINAL LYMPH-NODES

PURPOSE: To evaluate the usefulness of transesophageal real-time ultrasound (US)-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) in staging non-small cell lung carcinoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two patients (a 64-year-old man and a 48-year-old woman) with non-small cell lung carcinoma and mediastinal lymphadenopathy detected at computed tomography underwent preoperative evaluation with transesophageal real-time US-guided FNAB. Two aspirates were obtained from each patient. RESULTS: Diagnostic tissue from a contralateral posterior mediastinal lymph node was obtained from the first aspirate in each case. Neither patient experienced a complication as a result of this technique, and both were subsequently referred for palliative therapy in light of these findings. CONCLUSION. Real-time US-guided FNAB is useful in the preoperative staging of disease in selected patients with non-small cell lung cancer.