Clinically, low-malignant nodules can be treated with conservative treatment of regular CT follow-up. If the nodules are increased in size or solid component, more invasive therapy is suggested. Infections, benign nodules, and intrapulmonary lymph nodes often resolve or become stationary after regular follow-up.
The current main treatment methods for pulmonary multifocal GGO are forming a troika including the following: surgery, stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT), and thermal tumor ablation (including radiofrequency ablation, microwave ablation, and cryoablation).
GGO can be a manifestation of a wide variety of clinical features, including malignancies and benign conditions, such as focal interstitial fibrosis, inflammation, and hemorrhage (3). However, lesions with GGO that do not disappear are often lung cancer or its precursor lesions (4).
GGNs are manifestations of both malignant and benign lesions, such as focal interstitial fibrosis, inflammation, or hemorrhage (1). However, slowly growing or stable GGNs are early lung cancers or their preinvasive lesions, atypical adenomatous hyperplasia (AAH) or adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS).
Pure ground-glass opacity (GGO) nodules are important indicators of lung cancer on CT. GGO nodules are defined as hazy areas, which do not block the parenchymal structures, vessels, and airways under the nodules 3, 4.
Several studies showed that the 5-year survival rate of malignant tumors reached 100% (23-25,33). In this study, all patients after surgery were followed up for 24–36 months, 2-year RFS and 2-year OS both were 100% except 15 (11.8%) patients were lost.
Conclusions: Some small lung lesions exhibiting ground-glass opacity persisted without changes in size, whereas others grew gradually. The tendency to grow was clear within the first 3 years in all cases. Therefore, we conclude that these lesions should be followed for at least 3 years.
About 40 percent of pulmonary nodules turn out to be cancerous. Half of all patients treated for a cancerous pulmonary nodule live at least five years past the diagnosis. But if the nodule is one centimeter across or smaller, survival after five years rises to 80 percent. That's why early detection is critical.
Pulmonary ground glass opacity (GGO) is becoming an important clinical dilemma in oncology as its diagnosis in clinical practice is increasing due to the introduction of low dose computed tomography (CT) scan and screening. The incidence of cancer in GGO has been reported as high as 63%.
The doubling time for most malignant nodules is between 30 and 400 days. The absence of growth of solid nodule over at least a 2-year period is generally considered to be a reliable indicator of benignity.
Patients who have RBILD typically are current smokers with more than 30 pack-years of cigarette smoking. High-resolution CT manifestations of RBILD typically consist of ground-glass opacities and poorly defined centrilobular nodules. The abnormalities can be diffuse or involve mainly the upper or lower lung zones.
Ground-glass opacity (GGO) is a common finding on high resolution CT, characterised by areas of hazy increased attenuation of the lung with preservation of bronchial and vascular margins; it is not to be confused with consolidation, in which bronchovascular structures are obscured.
Clinically, low-malignant nodules can be treated with conservative treatment of regular CT follow-up. If the nodules are increased in size or solid component, more invasive therapy is suggested. Infections, benign nodules, and intrapulmonary lymph nodes often resolve or become stationary after regular follow-up.
Your lungs are a remarkable organ system that, in some instances, have the ability to repair themselves over time. After quitting smoking, your lungs begin to slowly heal and regenerate. The speed at which they heal all depends on how long you smoked and how much damage is present.
To summarize, if GGN is an incidental finding through LDCT, the lesion should be followed according to the current guidelines. If a new solid component develops or the solid portion size grows on follow-up CT, the risk of malignancy is high, so surgical resection should be discussed in the multidisciplinary team.
A considerable proportion of GGNs disappear spontaneously. An ill-defined border of a GGN may be a sign of spontaneous regression, which suggests an inflammatory nature (1,7). Several characteristics of GGNs may be the sign of future growth and malignancy.
An asymptomatic smoker shows centrilobular nodules of ground glass opacity (arrow) on HRCT, typical of the peribronchiolar cellular infiltration and inflammation seen in respiratory bronchiolitis (RB).
Can a CT scan tell if a lung nodule is cancerous? The short answer is no. A CT scan usually isn't enough to tell whether a lung nodule is a benign tumor or a cancerous lump. A biopsy is the only way to confirm a lung cancer diagnosis.
Small, noncancerous lung nodules don't usually require treatment. You may need treatments, such as antibiotics or antifungal medications, if you have an infection. If the nodule grows, causes problems or is cancerous, you may need surgery.
Compared to malignant tumors, benign lung tumors: Aren't cancerous, so won't spread to other parts of the body. Grow slowly, or might even stop growing or shrink.
Causes. The differential diagnosis for ground-glass opacities is broad. General etiologies include infections, interstitial lung diseases, pulmonary edema, pulmonary hemorrhage, and neoplasm.
Pulmonary nodules with ground-glass opacity (GGO) are frequently observed and will be increasingly detected. GGO can be observed in both benign and malignant conditions, including lung cancer and its preinvasive lesions.