Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome

ten, and contained information relevant for clinicians. Chapter 26, which covered positron emission tomography (PET), was surprisingly thin, especially given the robust amount of recently published information on PET in lung cancer diagnosis and staging. More information on PET technique, examples of PET/computed-tomography fusion images, and clinically-oriented recommendations (eg, when should PET be used in the work-up of a patient with lung cancer?) should have been included. Chapter 28 is an excellent review of both preoperative and postoperative lung-cancer staging; however, an important subject of controversy that was inadequately addressed is the role of PET in staging mediastinal lymph nodes and PET’s value in the context of the current accepted standard: mediastinoscopy. Finally, Chapter 29 should be eliminated, given its narrow scope and the fact that the information in it appears in other chapters. I am not a surgeon, but I have 3 critiques of Part VI, which addresses surgical aspects. First, Chapter 31, which covers surgery for early-stage non-small-cell lung cancer, was brief, and the interested reader will need to find another text to gain a greater depth of understanding on this subject. Second, although I enjoyed the up-to-date, clear, unbiased discussion on recent trials in adjuvant chemotherapy for resectable nonsmall-cell lung cancer, the topic is wellcovered in Chapter 45 and doesn’t belong in this section. Finally, most of the chapters in this part do not contain information on ongoing or future trials in the surgical management of lung cancer. Parts VII through X focus on radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and multimodality therapyof small-cell andnon-small-cell lung cancer. The chapters on radiation therapy (Part VII) are detailed and clearly organized. The chapters on chemotherapy (Part VIII) are also informative, though Chapters 40 and 41, which cover chemotherapy for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer, should really be combined, as they contain essentially the same information. I found the notionofcarvingout separatechapters for treatment of the elderly (“Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer in the Elderly: Current Treatment Paradigms,” Chapter 42 and “Treatment of Small-Cell Lung Cancer in the Elderly Patient,” Chapter 48) original but superfluous, given the overlap with other chapters. In this edition the editors added a new part on the growing field of interventional pulmonology (Part XII), and one on other thoracic tumors (Part XIII). Part XII addresses palliation and uses special circumstances (malignant pleural and pericardial effusions, hemoptysis, and airway obstruction) to introduce the concepts of electrocautery, laser, stents, photodynamic therapy, and brachytherapy. In Part XIII, the chapters covering thymoma, thymic carcinoma, and malignant mesothelioma are definitely adequate. Still missing from even this new edition is practical information on the components of a strong multidisciplinary lung-cancer program. It is becoming well accepted that all institutions treating patients with lung cancer should develop a high-quality program that speeds cooperation and communication among the involved subspecialists, to optimize efficiency and patient outcomes. More and more information is becoming available on the components of such programs (eg, the American College of Chest Physicians evidence-based guidelines), and I advise readers to seek out that information. In summary, this text is a comprehensive, up-to-date review of a rapidly evolving field. The relatively few disappointments I mentioned above are more than made up for by the presentation of quality information by well-selected contributors. This reference belongs on the office shelves of all providers who care for people with lung cancer.