Abstract
Objective: Improvement of quality of life (QOL) is a main issue in patients with advanced bronchial cancer. Hemoptysis, dyspnea and irritating cough resulting from endobronchial obstruction are the main cause of QOL disturbance in those patients and interventional bronchoscopic treatment may play a role in solving this problem.
Methods: Patients with different symptoms related to endobronchial obstruction due to lung cancer were recruited into two groups. The first group was treated with argon plasma coagulation (APC) and the second group was treated with cryotherapy. All methods were applied via the fiberoptic bronchoscope under local anesthesia. The impact of bronchoscopic treatment on improvement of symptoms, arterial blood gases parameters, pulmonary function tests parameters, QOL and performance scale were evaluated.
Results: Forty five patients were recruited in the study. Twenty five patients were treated with APC and twenty patients were treated with cryotherapy. Bronchoscopic treatment was able to improve symptoms, pulmonary function test and blood gases parameters with subsequent improvement in the performance state of the treated patients.
Conclusions: Bronchoscopic treatment is an effective treatment to deal with symptoms related to endobronchial obstruction with subsequent improvement in the pulmonary function, blood gases, as well as QOL in these patients.
- © 2012 ERS
