The clinical value of autofluorescence bronchoscopy for the diagnosis of lung cancer

¹ University Dept of Medicine
² Dept of Pathology
³ Tuberculosis and Chest Unit, Grantham Hospital
⁴ Respiratory Medical Dept, Kowloon Hospital
⁵ Diagnostic Radiology, University of Hong Kong

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: lambing{at}hkucc.hku.hk.

	Abstract

To evaluate the role of autofluorescence bronchoscopy in routine work-up of lung cancer.

Consecutive patients with atypical cells/suspicious cells in sputum or bronchial aspirate, non-localizing radiological examination, and non-diagnostic white light bronchoscopic examination were recruited. White light (WLB) and autofluorescence bronchoscopy (AFB) examination were performed sequentially in the same session. All abnormal areas detected by WLB, AFB or both were biopsied and sent for histological examination.

Sixty-two patients were recruited within the 32 months study period. Seventeen had no endobronchial lesion detected. Among the 45 patients with endobronchial lesions: 37 had lesions with histopathology grade mild dysplasia or less; For the 8 patients who had lesion with histological grade moderate dysplasia or worse, 5 patients were found to have lung cancer: 2 had invasive lung cancer and 3 had intraepithelial neoplasm (severe dysplasia). Lesions with moderate dysplasia or worse were more commonly found in patients with "suspicious cells" than patients with "atypical cells" in sputum examination. AFB is more sensitive than WLB (91% Vs 58%) in detecting these lesions though less specific (26% Vs 50%).

The combination of WLB and AFB can increase the diagnostic yield of this invasive procedure in patients with abnormal sputum cytology.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				M. Pilichowska, S. Klepper, G. Campbell, A. Klein, A. Ernst, and G. Finlay A 64-Year-Old Woman With Cough and Right Middle Lobe Collapse Chest, November 1, 2007; 132(5): 1691 - 1696. [Full Text] [PDF]