Table 1.
Characteristics of patients.
| All patients (n = 22) | Early-stage patients (n = 12) | Locally advanced-stage patients (n = 10) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Characteristics of patients | |||
| Age, years | |||
| Mean ± SD | 70.0 ± 9.3 | 71.9 ± 9.6 | 67.6 ± 8.9 |
| Median (IQR) | 70 (63-75) | 71 (65-82) | 70 (61-74) |
| Gender, male, n (%) | 14 (63.6%) | 6 (50.0%) | 8 (80.0%) |
| Smoking habit (current or former), n (%) | 22 (100.0%) | 12 (100.0%) | 10 (100.0%) |
| Characteristics of tumors | |||
| Pathological stage, n (%) | |||
| Stage I | 7 (31.8%) | 7 (58.3%) | - |
| Stage II | 5 (22.7%) | 5 (41.7%) | - |
| Stage IIIA | 10 (45.5%) | - | 10 (100.0%) |
| T, n (%) | |||
| T1 | 6 (27.3%) | 6 (50.0%) | - |
| T2 | 6 (27.3%) | 6 (50.0%) | - |
| T3 | 3 (13.6%) | - | 3 (30.0%) |
| T4 | 7 (31.8%) | - | 7 (70.0%) |
| N, n (%) | |||
| N0 | 19 (86.4%) | 11 (91.7%) | 8 (80.0%) |
| N1 | 2 (9.1%) | 1 (8.3%) | 1 (10.0%) |
| N2 | 1 (4.5%) | 0 (0.0%) | 1 (10.0%) |
| M0, n (%) | 22 (100.0%) | 12 (100.0%) | 10 (100.0%) |
| Histotype, n (%) | |||
| ACL | 17 (77.3%) | 8 (66.7%) | 9 (90.0%) |
| Acinar | 9 (40.2%) | 5 (41.7%) | 4 (40.0%) |
| Papillary | 3 (13.6%) | 1 (8.3%) | 2 (20.0%) |
| Solid | 5 (22.7%) | 2 (16.7%) | 3 (30.0%) |
| SCCL | 5 (22.7%) | 4 (33.3%) | 1 (10.0%) |
| Pleural invasion (Yes), n (%) | 11 (50.0%) | 3 (25.0%) | 8 (80.0%) |
| Vascular invasion (Yes), n (%) | 3 (13.6%) | 0 (0.0%) | 3 (30.0%) |
| PET SUVmax | |||
| Mean ± SD | 8.4 ± 5.9 | 5.7 ± 3.8 | 11.7 ± 6.4 |
| Median (IQR) | 5.8 (4.2-12.4) | 5.3 (3.8-6.2) | 11.5 (5.9-16.2) |
| Tumor dimension, mm | |||
| Mean ± SD | 51.6 ± 23.4 | 34.8 ± 16.1 | 71.7 ± 11.9 |
| Median (IQR) | 51 (29-70) | 31 (25-40) | 69 (63-80) |
| Characteristics of surgery | |||
| Type of surgery, n (%) | |||
| Lobectomy | 19 (86.4%) | 12 (100.0%) | 7 (70.0%) |
| Pneumonectomy | 3 (13.6%) | 2 (16.7%) | 3 (30.0%) |
| Surgical approach, n (%) | |||
| Lateral thoracotomy | 15 (68.2%) | 5 (41.7%) | 10 (100.0%) |
| VATS | 7 (31.8%) | 7 (58.3%) | 0 (0.0%) |
| Diagnostic procedures, n (%) | |||
| 18F-FDG PET/CT + FBS | 11 (50.0%) | 11 (91.7%) | 0 (0.0%) |
| 18F-FDG PET/CT + FBS + EBUS | 11 (50.0%) | 1 (8.3%) | 10 (100.0%) |
| Previous treatments, n (%) | |||
| Neoadjuvant CT | 3 (13.6%) | 0 (0.0%) | 3 (30.0%) |
| Neoadjuvant RT | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0.0%) |
| Adjuvant CT | 11 (50.0%) | 2 (16.7%) | 9 (90.0%) |
| Adjuvant RT | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0.0%) |
| Cellular and molecular characteristics | |||
| CSCs frequency, % on viable cells | |||
| Mean ± SD | 4.0 ± 3.4% | 5.1% ± 3.3% | 3.4% ± 3.6% |
| Median (IQR) | 3.4% (1.3-4.7%) | 3.7% (2.6-6.8%) | 2.4% (0.9-4.2%) |
| Expression of RGs in CSCs ∆Ct | |||
| Mean ± SD | 5.4 ± 2.4 | 5.5 ± 2.5 | 5.4 ± 2.5 |
| Median (IQR) | 6.0 (3.5-7.3) | 6.0 (3.6-7.5) | 5.9 (3.6-7.1) |
| Expression of RGs in cancer cells ∆Ct | |||
| Mean ± SD | 6.4 ± 3.7 | 6.9 ± 4.0 | 5.7 ± 3.5 |
| Median (IQR) | 6.1 (3.9-8.4) | 6.5 (4.8-9.5) | 6.1 (3.4-7.3) |
Abbreviations: ∆Ct, individual unweighted average difference in Ct between RGs and housekeeping genes; 18F-FDG PET/CT, positron emission tomography with 2-deoxy-2-[fluorine-18]fluoro-d-glucose integrated with computed tomography; ACL, adenocarcinoma of the lung; CSCs, cancer stem cells; CT, chemotherapy; Ct, cycle threshold; EBUS, endobronchial ultrasound; FBS, fibrobronchoscopy; IQR, interquartile range; RG, recurrence-related gene; RT, radiotherapy; SCCL, squamous cell carcinoma of the lung; SD, standard deviation; VATS, video-assisted thoracic surgery.