Quality Assessment of Video Mediastinoscopy Performed for Staging in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Background Mediastinoscopy is considered to be the gold standard for mediastinal staging for patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The diagnostic value depends on how this procedure is performed, which has resulted in drafting a guideline by the European Society of Thoracic Surgery (ESTS). Biopsy of at least stations 4R, 4L, 7, and if present stations 2R and 2L, is recommended.

The use of iodine seed (I-125) as a marker for the localisation of lung nodules in minimal invasive pulmonary surgery.

Aim: Video assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) is an important tool in the field of thoracic pathology both for therapeutic and diagnostic purposes. The standard technique for localisation of non-visible or non-palpable lung lesions is the use of image guided insertion of a guide-wire. However, this method is associated with complications such as pneumothorax, bleeding and wire-dislocation.