A NEW APPROACH FOR PERFORMING A ONE-STAGE OPERATION THROUGH THE MEDIASTINUM TO RESECT BILATERAL LUNG METASTASES - REPORT OF A CASE

We describe herein a new operative technique for reaching the opposite lung from the thoracotomy site through the mediastinum. This procedur e was successfully performed on a 76-year-old woman with bilateral lun g metastases whose case is presented. After resection of the right low er lobe which contained two metastases, the anterior mediastinum was o pened, and contralateral metastasis located in the lingular segment wa s resected using a neodymium:yttrium-aluminum-garnet (Nd:YAG) laser. A chest drainage tube was inserted through the mediastinal window. This transmediastinal approach seems to be a feasible technique for preser ving the respiratory function of the chest wall in patients with imbal anced bilateral metastases.