Table 1.

Lung cancer field cancerization and tumor microenvironment comparative analysis.

	Field Cancerization	Tumor Microenvironment	Ref
Localization	Widespread in the respiratory tract.	Peritumoral and intratumoral	[43,44]
Main characteristics	Progressive DNA damage. Accumulation of oncogenic mutations. Inactivation of tumor suppressor genes.	Epithelial–mesothelial transition activation, heterogenous cellular populations, complex roles in tumorigenesis and acquiring of the hallmarks of cancer by the tumor.	[25,26,43,45]
Pathology	Adjacent premalignant lesions are identifiable on classic histology. Normal-appearing adjacent tissue might harbor genetic mutations that need further molecular analysis.	Identifiable with classic histology and with immunohistochemistry for a specific cellular population.	[46,47]
Removal	Not removed with the primary tumor and can give rise to second tumors.	Usually removed with the main tumor.	[48]
Constituents	Normal-appearing cells or premalignant cells of the respiratory tract.	Immune populations composed mainly of leucocytes and macrophages and stromal populations, including the extracellular matrix, blood vessels and signaling molecules.	[25,44,45]
Role(s)	Develops due to progressive exposure to stressors and toxins and can progress and give rise to tumors.	Supports tumor progression and development and creates a tumor sanctuary that promotes proliferation and dissemination.	[44,45,46,49]