Pulmonary resection after immunotherapy

The efficacy of immunotherapy for patients with late stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has inspired its application for earlier stage disease. Immunotherapy as a neoadjuvant arm of a multimodality treatment strategy has shown promise in recent prospective trials. Pulmonary resection after immunotherapy can be challenging due to the development of mediastinal fibrosis and/or pneumonitis. Recent trials have established the safety and feasibility of minimally invasive pulmonary resection for patients after immunotherapy. In this review, we will summarize the current data for neoadjuvant immunotherapy and discuss early experiences with pulmonary resection after immunotherapy. With future studies ongoing, we anticipate a growing cohort of patients presenting for surgical resection after immunotherapy.