After the liver, the lung is the second most common site for metastatic involvement in neoplastic disease when all histologies are considered. Consequently, 20% to 54% of patients with cancer have pulmonary metastases at some point in the natural history of their disease. In the absence of extrathoracic metastases (25% of patients with disseminated disease), complete resection is associated with increased survival, regardless of histology. With appropriate patient selection, life expectancy is often improved, and in some cases, cures are reported with resection alone or in combination with chemotherapy.<sup>15 Burt M. Pulmonary malignancy Pulmonary Disease Philadelphia: JB Lippincott (1998).  1851-1860

Cliccare qui per andare alla sezione Riferimenti, 143 Viadana E., Irwin D., Bross J. , e al. Cascade spread of blood-borne metastases in solid and nonsolid cancers in humans Pulmonary Metastasis Boston: GK Hall (1978).  143-167

Cliccare qui per andare alla sezione Riferimenti</sup> Even in the context of unresectability, surgical forms of palliation often improve quality of life. For other patients (e.g., those with nonseminomatous germ-cell tumors), surgery may have a more diagnostic role, such as defining residual disease that is potentially amenable to salvage forms of therapy.