Impact of the introduction of EBUS on time to management decision complications and invasive modalities used to diagnose and stage lung cancer: a pragmatic pre-post study

摘要

BackgroundUtilisation of endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) and guide sheath (EBUS-GS) for diagnosis and staging of lung cancer is gaining popularity, however, its impact on clinical practice is unclear. This study aimed to determine the impact of the introduction of endobronchial ultrasound-guided procedures (EBUS) on time to management decision for lung cancer patients, and on the utilisation of other invasive diagnostic modalities, including CT-guided trans-thoracic needle aspiration (CT-TTNA), bronchoscopy, and mediastinoscopy.