Anatomical sublobar resection versus pulmonary lobectomy for clinical stage I non-small-cell lung cancer: patients selection and outcome from the European Society of Thoracic Surgeons database analysis

Even though the “gold standard” procedure for clinical stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is pulmonary lobectomy, there is an increasing interest in anatomical sublobar resections; nevertheless, segmentectomies are still debated procedures. In European countries patients selection methods and outcomes are unknown. The primary purpose of the study was to describe the potential selection criteria for patients scheduled for lobectomy versus segmentectomy for stage I NSCLC. Secondary aim was to compare the two procedures, in terms of intraoperative variables and postoperative outcomes.