Thermal Ablation and Rapid On‐Site Cytology for Lung Nodules—A ‘One‐Stop Shop’ Approach for Small Lesions: Experience in 8 Patients

AIM: This technical report describes our experience with eight patients with small lung lesions (less than 2 cm) treated by thermal ablation after rapid on-site cytological confirmation of cancer diagnosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Six patients were treated by microwave ablation and two by cryoablation, under local anaesthesia. Small, easily accessible tumours with low a priori risk of complications were selected. Serial thoracic CT scans were performed to assess for local recurrence, and overall survival was recorded. RESULTS: Complete ablation under local anaesthesia was possible in all patients with no major complications; all patients were discharged on the same day. No hospital admissions were recorded within 30 days after the procedures, and no local recurrences were identified after an average follow-up of 40 months (28-60 month range). Six patients are still alive, whereas two died of causes unrelated to the initial thermoablation treatment. CONCLUSION: We describe a favourable outcome of carefully selected patients who benefit from a rapid diagnosis-treatment sequence under local anaesthesia. Microwave ablation is favoured, in our experience, over cryoablation for this patient population due to shorter treatment time.