40-year-old Ms. Wang found a small nodule with a diameter of 6 millimeters in her lung during physical examination. Although it was only the size of a bowl, this small nodule made Ms. Wang sleepless. How can lung nodules grow without smoking? Is it benign or malignant?
To relieve the trouble, Ms. Wang rushed to the hospital for treatment. After further examination, early lung cancer could not be ruled out. Considering that the lesion is very small, the hospital implemented microwave ablation surgery for Ms. Wang, and the lesion was removed within 20 minutes. Due to the accurate and timely treatment, Ms. Wang recovered quickly after the operation, and the long-term curative effect was well estimated.
Like Ms. Wang, she has no symptoms, neither cough nor chest pain. It is just a small lung nodule found during physical examination. How should we deal with it? Today we have invited Professor Wang Tao from the Department of Thoracic Surgery of Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University School of Medicine to listen to his views.
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alert overtreatment of small pulmonary nodules
air pollution has been increasing, low-dose CT Popularity, more and more patients with small lung nodules have been discovered in recent years.
How to prevent overtreatment of lung nodules?
Wang Tao said,There are many types of lung nodules. It is generally believed in clinical practice that if the lung nodules are smaller than 8 mm and have clear and smooth edges, it is more likely to be considered benign, but regular follow-up is still needed.
▲ On the CT film, the small dot in a small circle is the small lung nodule.
Generally speaking, the early growth of nodules is very slow. If the nodules grow rapidly in a short period of time, it cannot be ruled out as malignant.
Most nodules have not been observed to grow within two years. Generally, they can be regarded as benign or very slowly developing lung cancer. It is recommended to review them every year.
◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ _strong32 _p5 0p What are the recommended treatment methods for the small span?
Once a small lung nodule is found, the doctor will interpret and make a plan based on the risk factors and follow-up. .
For patients with lung nodules who are highly suspected of lung cancer in morphology,Minimally invasive surgery can be used if necessary. Here, we recommend microwave ablation of small lung nodules ——Through a thin needle of , the lung nodules can be coagulated and necrotic in just a few minutes, while the surrounding tissues are extremely There is little or no damage to achieve the purpose of "burning" tumor cells.
The appearance of microwave ablation on CT (source: Yigao Microwave)
According to my country's five-year clinical data, microwave ablation of small thoracic nodules can reach early stage and surgical thoracoscopy. The surgical operation has the same therapeutic effect, and there is no reduction in lung volume, the trauma is minimal, the patient is basically painless, and the postoperative recovery is quick. It is especially suitable for patients with old age, poor lung function, unsuitability or intolerance to surgery, etc. It is also a very good choice for small lung nodules with high risk factors in the early stage.
Once a patient with pulmonary nodules is diagnosed with advanced lung cancer, it will not only cost a lot, but also have poor efficacy, and it will also cause a heavy blow to the family. If microwave ablation is used in the early stage, a complete cure can be achieved without sequelae. It can be said that microwave ablation of the lungs is the best choice for people at high risk of lung cancer.
Expert introduction: