As a result of the intraluminal growth pattern that occurs with most NSCLCs, bronchial stenosis and post-stenotic changes are common in patients with NSCLC. Chest radiographs may reveal narrowing of the main bronchi or a complete cutoff.
PET imaging has a higher sensitivity, higher specificity, and higher accuracy than CT scanning in staging mediastinal disease. In fact, published studies have shown a sensitivity of 80%, an overall specificity of 92%, and an accuracy of 92%, with a positive predictive value of 90% and a negative predictive value of 93%.
CT scanning has many benefits in patients with NSCLC. It can be used to distinguish tumor from atelectatic lung, and it may be able to demonstrate superior vena cava compression, pericardial effusion, and lymphangitic dissemination in several other conditions. A chest CT scan is the standard for staging of NSCLC. However, the inability of CT scanning to distinguish NSCLC invasion from simple approximation to adjacent structures is considered a major limitation.
In most cases, the findings of CT chest scans and clinical presentation will permit a presumptive differentiation between NSCLC and SCLC.
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Any views expressed above are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of WebMD or Medscape.
Cite this: Daniel S. Schwartz. Fast Five Quiz: Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer - Medscape - Feb 03, 2021.
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