The problem with sublobar resections

Use of national databases: interpreting treatment outcomes using real-world data

“…We appreciate the commentary brought by Cao and colleagues. Principally, they highlight several limitations associated with the use of a large national database (2). The extent of analysis that can be performed using a large database is limited by the granularity of the data and the sample size afforded after stringent inclusion and exclusion criteria are applied.…”

“…Not only do they capture a diverse patient population representative of NSCLC in the United States, they include patients from hospitals of varying volume and specialization. While Cao and colleagues note that advances in histologic subtyping and examination of spread through air spaces (STAS) can provide important adjuncts to determination of extent of resection, there remains insufficient evidence that these techniques have been adopted routinely in the majority of practices (2).…”