Abstract

Lung cancer originates so close to the pulmonary veins that penetration into the blood circulation is naturally assured. Despite such excellent hematogenous opportunities, it is the lymphogenous route that brings about centrifugal lymph node involvement as low down as the abdomen. Therefore, it is hypothesized that the more distant popliteal nodes should be purposively harvested ethically, cut serially, processed technically and examined very minutely after specially staining for both blood and lymph endothelium. This model will probably help to explain nature’s secret, namely, that circulating lung cancer cells are largely ineffective colonizers once lymphoid tissues are located afar.

Key words: Lung cancer, popliteal lymph nodes, metastasis.