- Section 1 Patients and their treatment
- Section 2 Background to medicine
- Section 3 Cell biology
- Section 4 Immunological mechanisms
- Section 5 Principles of clinical oncology
- Section 6 Old age medicine
- Section 7 Pain and palliative care
- Section 8 Infectious diseases
- Section 9 Sexually transmitted diseases
- Section 10 Environmental medicine, occupational medicine, and poisoning
- Section 11 Nutrition
- Section 12 Metabolic disorders
- Section 13 Endocrine disorders
- Section 14 Medical disorders in pregnancy
- Section 15 Gastroenterological disorders
- Section 16 Cardiovascular disorders
- Section 17 Critical care medicine
- Section 18 Respiratory disorders
- 18.1 Structure and function
- 18.2 The clinical presentation of respiratory disease
- 18.3 Clinical investigation of respiratory disorders
- 18.4 Respiratory infection
- 18.5 The upper respiratory tract
- 18.6 Allergic rhinitis
- 18.7 Asthma
- 18.8 Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- 18.9 Bronchiectasis
- 18.10 Cystic fibrosis
- 18.11 Diffuse parenchymal lung diseases
- 18.12 Sarcoidosis
- 18.13 Pneumoconioses
- 18.14 Miscellaneous conditions
- 18.15 Chronic respiratory failure
- 18.16 Lung transplantation
- 18.17 Pleural diseases
- 18.18 Disorders of the thoracic cage and diaphragm
- 18.19 Malignant diseases
- 18.19.1 Lung cancer
- 18.19.2 Pulmonary metastases
- 18.19.3 Pleural tumours
- 18.19.4 Mediastinal tumours and cysts
- Section 19 Rheumatological disorders
- Section 20 Disorders of the skeleton
- Section 21 Disorders of the kidney and urinary tract
- Section 22 Haematological disorders
- Section 23 Disorders of the skin
- Section 24 Neurological disorders
- Section 25 Disorders of the eye
- Section 26 Psychiatric and drug-related disorders
- Section 27 Forensic medicine
- Section 28 Sport and exercise medicine
- Section 29 Biochemistry in medicine
- Section 30 Acute medicine
(p. 4360) Pulmonary metastases
- Chapter:
- (p. 4360) Pulmonary metastases
- Author(s):
S.G. Spiro
- DOI:
- 10.1093/med/9780198746690.003.0439
Malignant metastasis to the lung is common. It may present as a solitary enlarging nodule, as multiple nodules ranging enormously in size and number, and/or with diffuse lymphatic involvement. Diagnosis can usually be secured by percutaneous CT-guided biopsy and most suspicious lesions will be PET positive. Resection remains the treatment of choice, and good prognostic factors include the time from treatment of the primary tumour to the development of lung metastases, the fewer the number, the absence of extrapulmonary metastases, and the longer the tumour doubling time. The most favourable group are younger patients with a good performance status, with sarcomas who present with lesions a year or more after successful treatment of the primary disease. Factors including older age, male sex, and more lung metastases predict poorer survival after resection of any initial pulmonary metastases.
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- Section 1 Patients and their treatment
- Section 2 Background to medicine
- Section 3 Cell biology
- Section 4 Immunological mechanisms
- Section 5 Principles of clinical oncology
- Section 6 Old age medicine
- Section 7 Pain and palliative care
- Section 8 Infectious diseases
- Section 9 Sexually transmitted diseases
- Section 10 Environmental medicine, occupational medicine, and poisoning
- Section 11 Nutrition
- Section 12 Metabolic disorders
- Section 13 Endocrine disorders
- Section 14 Medical disorders in pregnancy
- Section 15 Gastroenterological disorders
- Section 16 Cardiovascular disorders
- Section 17 Critical care medicine
- Section 18 Respiratory disorders
- 18.1 Structure and function
- 18.2 The clinical presentation of respiratory disease
- 18.3 Clinical investigation of respiratory disorders
- 18.4 Respiratory infection
- 18.5 The upper respiratory tract
- 18.6 Allergic rhinitis
- 18.7 Asthma
- 18.8 Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- 18.9 Bronchiectasis
- 18.10 Cystic fibrosis
- 18.11 Diffuse parenchymal lung diseases
- 18.12 Sarcoidosis
- 18.13 Pneumoconioses
- 18.14 Miscellaneous conditions
- 18.15 Chronic respiratory failure
- 18.16 Lung transplantation
- 18.17 Pleural diseases
- 18.18 Disorders of the thoracic cage and diaphragm
- 18.19 Malignant diseases
- 18.19.1 Lung cancer
- 18.19.2 Pulmonary metastases
- 18.19.3 Pleural tumours
- 18.19.4 Mediastinal tumours and cysts
- Section 19 Rheumatological disorders
- Section 20 Disorders of the skeleton
- Section 21 Disorders of the kidney and urinary tract
- Section 22 Haematological disorders
- Section 23 Disorders of the skin
- Section 24 Neurological disorders
- Section 25 Disorders of the eye
- Section 26 Psychiatric and drug-related disorders
- Section 27 Forensic medicine
- Section 28 Sport and exercise medicine
- Section 29 Biochemistry in medicine
- Section 30 Acute medicine