The 2021 US Preventive Services Task Force lung cancer screening eligibility criteria disproportionately exclude younger Black patients with lung cancer.

Background: The 2021 US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) lung cancer screening guideline may continue to exclude many younger Black individuals who have not yet accumulated enough smoking pack-years to be eligible for screening. The objective of this study was to evaluate the proportions of Black and White patients with lung cancer, stratified by age at diagnosis, who would have been eligible for lung cancer screening.

Methods: Incident lung cancer cases among Black and White individuals aged 50-80 years with a smoking history in the Southern Community Cohort Study (SCCS) were identified for analysis.

Primary lung signet-ring cell carcinoma: a national analysis.

Background: Primary lung signet-ring cell carcinoma (LSRCC) is a rare form of aggressive lung cancer whose clinical features remain inadequately discerned. The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinicopathological characteristics and independent prognostic factors of primary LSRCC.

Methods: Overall survival (OS) of patients with LSRCC, lung adenocarcinoma (LAC), and lung mucinous adenocarcinoma (LMAC) in the National Cancer Database from 2004 to 2018 was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier and multivariable Cox proportional hazards modeling.

Act1 drives chemoresistance via regulation of antioxidant RNA metabolism and redox homeostasis.

The IL-17 receptor adaptor molecule Act1, an RNA-binding protein, plays a critical role in IL-17-mediated cancer progression. Here, we report a novel mechanism of how IL-17/Act1 induces chemoresistance by modulating redox homeostasis through epitranscriptomic regulation of antioxidant RNA metabolism. Transcriptome-wide mapping of direct Act1-RNA interactions revealed that Act1 binds to the 5'UTR of antioxidant mRNAs and Wilms' tumor 1-associating protein (WTAP), a key regulator in m6A methyltransferase complex.

Early Detection and Interception of Lung Cancer.

Recent advances in lung cancer treatment have led to dramatic improvements in 5-year survival rates. And yet, lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related mortality, in large part, because it is often diagnosed at an advanced stage, when cure is no longer possible. Lung cancer screening (LCS) is essential for intercepting the disease at an earlier stage.

Pack-Year Smoking History: An Inadequate and Biased Measure to Determine Lung Cancer Screening Eligibility.

Purpose: Pack-year smoking history is an imperfect and biased measure of cumulative tobacco exposure. The use of pack-year smoking history to determine lung cancer screening eligibility in the current US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) guideline may unintentionally exclude many high-risk individuals, especially those from racial and ethnic minority groups. It is unclear whether using a smoking duration cutoff instead of a smoking pack-year cutoff would improve the selection of individuals for screening.

Wedge Resection versus Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Tumors ≤8 mm.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the overall survival of patients with ≤8 mm non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who undergo wedge resection versus stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT). Kaplan-Meier analysis, multivariable Cox proportional hazards modeling, and propensity score-matched analysis were performed to evaluate the overall survival of patients with ≤8 mm NSCLC in the National Cancer Database (NCDB) from 2004 to 2017 who underwent wedge resection versus patients who underwent SBRT. The above-mentioned matched analyses were repeated for patients with no comorbidities.

The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) Staging Project for Lung Cancer: Recommendation to Introduce Spread Through Air Spaces as a Histologic Descriptor in the Ninth Edition of the TNM Classification of Lung Cancer. Analysis of 4061 Pathologic Stage I NSCLC.

Introduction: Spread through air spaces (STAS) consists of lung cancer tumor cells that are identified beyond the edge of the main tumor in the surrounding alveolar parenchyma. It has been reported by meta-analyses to be an independent prognostic factor in the major histologic types of lung cancer, but its role in lung cancer staging is not established.

Methods: To assess the clinical importance of STAS in lung cancer staging, we evaluated 4061 surgically resected pathologic stage I R0 NSCLC collected from around the world in the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer database.

A Pilot Study Using Machine Learning Algorithms and Wearable Technology for the Early Detection of Postoperative Complications After Cardiothoracic Surgery.

Objective: To evaluate whether a machine learning algorithm (i.e. the "NightSignal" algorithm) can be used for the detection of postoperative complications prior to symptom onset after cardiothoracic surgery.

Long-term Survival After Lung Cancer Resection in the National Lung Screening Trial.

Background: This study sought to evaluate the long-term survival and causes of death after surgery among patients with pathologic stage IA non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST).

Methods: Patients who underwent surgery and who had a diagnosis of pathologic stage IA NSCLC in the NLST were identified for analysis. The 5- and 10-year overall survival and lung cancer-specific survival, stratified by operation type, were evaluated.

Comparison of failure to rescue in younger versus elderly patients following lung cancer resection.

Objective: Failure to rescue (FTR), defined as in-hospital death following a major complication, has been increasingly studied in patients who undergo cardiothoracic surgery. This study tested the hypothesis that elderly patients undergoing lung cancer resection have greater rates of FTR compared with younger patients.

Methods: Patients who underwent surgery for primary lung cancer between 2011 and 2020 and had at least 1 major postoperative complication were identified using the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database.

Primary clear cell adenocarcinoma of the lung: a national analysis.

Background: Primary clear cell adenocarcinoma of the lung (CCAL) is a rare form of lung cancer with poorly understood clinical features. We sought to investigate the clinicopathological characteristics and independent prognostic factors of primary CCAL.

Methods: Overall survival (OS) of patients with CCAL in the National Cancer Database (NCDB) from 2004 to 2017 was compared to lung adenocarcinoma using Kaplan-Meier analysis, multivariable Cox proportional hazards modeling, and propensity score matching.

Deaths Due to COVID-19 in Patients With Cancer During Different Waves of the Pandemic in the US.

Importance: With the ongoing relaxation of guidelines to prevent COVID-19 transmission, particularly in hospital settings, medically vulnerable groups, such as patients with cancer, may experience a disparate burden of COVID-19 mortality compared with the general population.

Objective: To evaluate COVID-19 mortality among US patients with cancer compared with the general US population during different waves of the pandemic.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This cross-sectional study used data from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's Wide-Ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research database to examine COVID-19 mortality among US patients with cancer and the general population from March 1, 2020, to May 31, 2022.

Long-Term Survival of American Joint Committee on Cancer 8th Edition Staging Descriptors for Clinical M1a Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Background: The American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) 8th edition TNM staging manual for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) M1a descriptors includes tumors presenting with malignant pleural or pericardial effusion (ie, M1a-Effusion), pleural or pericardial nodule(s) (ie, M1a-Pleural), or separate tumor nodule(s) in a contralateral lobe (ie, M1a-Contralateral).

Research Question: Is M1a NSCLC presenting with malignant pleural or pericardial effusion associated with worse survival compared with other types of M1a NSCLC?

Study Design And Methods: Patients with cT1-4, N0-3, M1a NSCLC (satisfying a single M1a descriptor of M1a-Effusion, M1a-Pleural, or M1a-Contralateral), according to AJCC eighth edition staging criteria, in the National Cancer Database from 2010 to 2015 were included. Overall survival was evaluated by using Kaplan-Meier analysis, multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazards modeling, and propensity score matching.

The Role of Salvage Resection After Definitive Radiation Therapy for Non-small Cell Lung Cancer.

Background: This study evaluated outcomes of patients who undergo extended delay to resection after definitive radiation therapy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Methods: Perioperative outcomes and 5-year overall survival of patients with NSCLC who underwent definitive radiation therapy, followed by resection, from 2004 to 2020 in the National Cancer Database were evaluated. Patients who underwent resection >180 days after the initiation of radiation therapy (including any external beam therapy at a total dose of >60 Gy) were included in the analysis.

Segmentectomy vs Lobectomy for Early Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer With Visceral Pleural Invasion.

Background: Recent prospective trials have demonstrated the noninferiority of segmentectomy to lobectomy in the surgical management of early non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). It remains unknown, however, whether segmentectomy is sufficient for treating small tumors with visceral pleural invasion (VPI), a known indicator of aggressive disease biology and poor prognosis in NSCLC.

Methods: Patients in the National Cancer Database (2010-2020) with cT1a-bN0M0 NSCLC and VPI and additional high-risk features who underwent segmentectomy or lobectomy were identified for analysis.

Recurrence After Complete Resection for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer in the National Lung Screening Trial.

Background: The objective of this study was to evaluate patterns, predictors, and long-term outcomes of recurrent disease after complete resection for early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) using the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST).

Methods: The frequency of recurrence in patients with pathologic stage I-II NSCLC who underwent complete resection (lobectomy or bilobectomy) in the NLST was evaluated. Predictors of increased risk of recurrence were assessed by Fine-Gray competing risks regression.

Efficacy and Safety of Supraclavicular Thoracic Outlet Decompression.

Objectives: We aimed to report efficacy, safety, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) outcomes of a multidisciplinary treatment approach including supraclavicular thoracic outlet decompression among patients with thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS).

Background: TOS is a challenging condition where controversy remains in diagnosis and treatment, primarily given a lack of data exploring various treatment approaches and associated patient outcomes.

Methods: Patients who underwent unilateral, supraclavicular thoracic outlet decompression, or pectoralis minor tenotomy for neurogenic, venous, or arterial TOS were identified from a prospectively maintained database.

Role of Adjuvant Chemotherapy in Early-Stage Combined Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Background: The role of adjuvant therapy in completely resected primary tumors that have components of both non-small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer (combined SCLC) is poorly understood. We sought to determine the potential benefits of adjuvant chemotherapy in patients who undergo complete resection for early-stage combined SCLC.

Methods: Overall survival of patients with pathologic T1-2 N0 M0 combined SCLC who underwent complete resection in the National Cancer Database from 2004 to 2017, stratified by adjuvant chemotherapy vs surgery alone, was evaluated by multivariable Cox proportional hazards modeling and propensity score-matched analysis.

A National Survey of Surgeons Evaluating the Accuracy of Mediastinal Lymph Node Identification.

Background: The Commission on Cancer implemented Standard 5.8 in 2021, which requires removal of 3 mediastinal nodes and 1 hilar node with lung cancer resection. We conducted a national survey to assess whether surgeons who treat lung cancer in different clinical settings correctly identify mediastinal lymph node stations.