# Uniportal video-assisted thoracoscopic segmentectomy for fetal adenocarcinoma lung cancer with severe pulmonary emphysema: a case report

## TL;DR

A 56-year-old woman with fetal adenocarcinoma and severe emphysema successfully underwent a minimally invasive lung surgery.

## Contribution

First reported case of uniportal VATS segmentectomy for fetal adenocarcinoma in a patient with poor pulmonary function.

## Key findings

- Uniportal VATS segmentectomy was successfully performed in a patient with severe pulmonary emphysema.
- The patient recovered well and was discharged within one week after surgery.
- The diagnosis confirmed low-grade fetal adenocarcinoma (stage IA3) with no metastasis.

## Abstract

Fetal adenocarcinoma is a very rare subtype of lung adenocarcinoma. Its incidence ranges from 0.1 to 0.87% among all primary lung neoplasms. Low-grade types tend to appear in the younger generation, and the age ranges from 20 to 50 years with a mean age of around 35 years. Surgical resection is currently the best way to treat fetal adenocarcinoma lung cancer without distant metastasis.

This is a 56-year-old female who underwent low-dose computer tomography (LDCT) screening during the health examination. She used to be a heavy smoker for more than 30 years, and the CT images revealed severe bronchiectasis and emphysema. There is a solitary nodule with a diameter of 18.9 x 17.8mm in the central area of the left upper lobe. We decided to conduct left upper lobe S1~S3 segmentectomy under uniportal VATS. The surgery was successful, and the patient was discharged within one week and recovered well. The final diagnosis was fetal adenocarcinoma, low-grade (pT1cN0Mx, stage IA3).

The first case reported as fetal adenocarcinoma lung cancer who underwent uniportal video-assisted thoracoscopic segmentectomy. We believe it is a safe and feasible procedure for low-grade types fetal adenocarcinoma patient with poor pulmonary function.