Hellenic Journal of Surgery 86 Prediction of Pulmonary Function After Lobectomy N. Baltayiannis, S. Nikolouzos, D. Anagnostopoulos, N. Bolanos, A. Chatzimichalis, G. Zacharia, A. Charpidou, K.Ν. Syrigos Hellenic Journal of Surgery (2014) 86:3, 159-165 N. Baltayiannis, D. Anagnostopoulos, N. Bolanos, A. Chatzimichalis Department of Thoracic Surgery, Metaxa Memorial Cancer Hospital, Piraeus, Greece S. Nikolouzos Department of Surgery, Corfu General Hospital, Corfu, Greece G. Zacharia Department of Anesthesiology, Corfu General Clinic, Corfu, Greece A. Charpidou, K.Ν. Syrigos Oncology Unit, 3 rd Department of Medicine, Athens Medical School, Sotiria Chest Diseases Hospital, Athens, Greece Correspondent Author: S. Nikolouzos Department of Surgery, Corfu General Hospital, Kontokali, 49100, Corfu, Greece, Tel ++302661360400, E-mail: stefanos.nikolouzos@gmail.com Received 22 Feb 2014; Accepted 9 April 2014 RESEARCH CLINICAL STUDY Abstract Aim-Background: Lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer death in both men and women in our country. It has been estimated that there will be 7,000 lung cancer deaths every year in Greece. However, many patients with bronchogenic carcinoma also have coexistent obstructive lung disease. In these patients, preoperative prediction of functional status after lung resection is mandatory. The aim of our study was to determine the effect of lobectomy on postoperative spirometric lung function. Methods: Seventy-two patients underwent spirometric pulmonary tests preoperatively, and at three and six months after surgery. The predicted postoperative forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV 1 ) were calculated using the following formula suggested by Juhl and Frost. Results: The functional percentage loss at six months for lobectomies was 7.34% for FVC and 7.72% for FEV 1 respec- tively. The linear regression analysis derived from the correlation between predicted and measured FEV 1 revealed the following equation: FEV 1 POSTOP = 0.00211+0.896660 X FEV 1 PREOP. Conclusions: We conclude that our formula is a reliable method for predicting postoperative respiratory function of the patients with lung cancer. Key words: Forced vital capacity; forced expiratory volume in the first second; lobectomy, lung cancer Introduction-aim Lung cancer is currently the most commonly diagnosed cancer as well as the leading cause of cancer death in males globally. Among females, it is the fourth most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death. Lung cancer accounts for 13% (1.6 million) of all cases and 18% (1.4 million) of deaths in 2008 [1]. The observed variations in lung cancer rates and trends across countries or between males and females within each country largely reflect differences in the stage and degree of the tobacco epidemic. Male lung cancer death rates are decreasing in most Western countries, including many European countries, North America, and Australia, where the tobacco epidemic peaked during the middle part of the last century. In contrast, lung cancer rates are increasing in countries such as China and several other countries in Asia and Africa, where the epidemic has been established more recently and continues to either increase or show signs of stability. Generally, lung cancer trends among females lag behind males because females started smoking in large numbers several decades later than males. Consequently, lung cancer rates in females are rising in many countries except the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia, where they are plateauing. Notably, the rates in Spain, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands rates are showing an increase in more recent female birth cohorts, suggesting that the lung cancer burden in females in these countries is likely continue to rise for several decades barring any major interventions [2]. Lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer death in Greece among males aged 40 years and older. Among females, lung cancer causes the most cancer deaths in those aged 60 years and older [1]. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for 80% of all newly-diagnosed lung cancers. In 2012, lung cancer was responsible for more than 7,000 deaths in Greece, though lung cancer mortality rates