Table 1.
Patient characteristics (N = 70)
| Characteristic | Number of patients (%) |
|---|---|
| Sex | |
| Male | 36 (51.4%) |
| Female | 34 (48.6%) |
| Age, years (mean ± SD) | 52.9 ± 11.6 |
| Presenting symptoms | 32 (45.7%) |
| Chest pain | 5 |
| Cough | 7 |
| Dyspnea | 4 |
| Weight loss | 1 |
| Abdominal pain | 2 |
| Chest pain plus cough | 4 |
| Chest pain plus fever | 4 |
| Dyspnea plus cough | 4 |
| Cough plus fever | 1 |
| Asymptomatic patients | 38 (54.3%) |
| Localization | |
| Thoracic | 70 |
| Pleura | 43 (61.4%) |
| Lung | 9 (12.9%) |
| Mediastinum | 16 (22.9%) |
| Esophagus | 1 (1.4%) |
| Diaphragm | 1 (1.4%) |
| Peritoneum | 1 |
| Tumor size, cm (mean ± SD) | 8.9 ± 6.2 |
| Tumor size category | |
| < 10 cm | 44 (62.9%) |
| ≥ 10 cm | 26 (37.1%) |
| Tumor type | |
| Benign | 58 (82.9%) |
| Malignant | 12 (17.1%) |
| Surgical approach | |
| Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery | 27 (38.6%, conversion rate 11.1% [3 of 27]) |
| Standard thoracotomy | 37 (52.9%) |
| Median sternotomy | 6 (8.6%) |
| Surgical procedures | |
| Mass excision | 29 (41.4%) |
| Mass excision with lung resection (wedge resection/lobectomy/pneumonectomy) | 38 (54.3%) |
| Mass excision with enbloc resection of other intrathoracic structures (diaphragm/parietal pleura/ pericardium/rib) | 3 (4.3%) + 2 (redo surgery for re-recurrence) |