Purpose: The chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) assessment test (CAT) is widely used to assess the impact of COPD symptoms on health status. Whilst the CAT consists of eight different items, details on the distribution of each item are limited. This study aimed to investigate the distribution and clinical implication of each CAT item, stratified by CAT severity group, in stable COPD patients. Patients and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study at a single referral hospital in South Korea. Spirometry confirmed COPD patients with CAT measured at the first clinical visit were retrospectively identified. Patients were categorized into three groups: low (0 ≤ CAT < 10), medium (10 ≤ CAT < 20), and high (20 ≤ CAT ≤ 40) impact group. For the purpose of this analysis, the first four items (cough, sputum, chest tightness, and dyspnea) and the remaining four items (activities, confidence, sleep and energy) were also grouped as “pulmonary” and “extra-pulmonary”, respectively. Results: A total of 815 patients were included, and mean (SD) forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV₁) was 62.8 (17.4) % pred. Among them, 300 patients (36.8%) were in the high impact group and had a greater exacerbation history and lower lung function. The proportion of “extra-pulmonary” items score was greater in patients with higher total CAT scores, with the activity and confidence items showing higher scores. Conclusion: In our study, in addition to dyspnea, activity limitation is a particular problem in individual patients with higher CAT total scores, for which physicians need to pay more attention. Our study suggests that whilst CAT total score captures the overall impact of COPD, each item of the CAT contains potentially useful information in understanding the patient’s symptom burden.

Kim BG, et al. J Korean Med Sci. 2023 Oct;38:e344. https://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2023.38.e344

Kim T, et al. J Korean Med Sci. 2024 Mar;39(11):e105. https://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2024.39.e105

Lung resection surgery for non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is reportedly a risk factor for developing chronic pulmonary aspergillosis (CPA). However, limited data are available regarding the development of CPA during long-term follow-up after lung cancer surgery. This study aimed to investigate the cumulative incidence and clinical factors associated with CPA development after lung cancer surgery. We retrospectively analyzed 3423 patients with NSCLC who (1) underwent surgical resection and (2) did not have CPA at the time of surgery between January 2010 and December 2013. The diagnosis of CPA was based on clinical symptoms, serological or microbiological evidences, compatible radiological findings, and exclusion of alternative diagnoses. The cumulative incidence of CPA and overall survival (OS) were estimated using the Kaplan–Meier method, and a multivariable Cox proportional hazard analysis was performed to identify factors associated with CPA development. Patients were followed-up for a median of 5.83 years with a 72.3% 5-year OS rate. Fifty-six patients developed CPA at a median of 2.68 years after surgery, with cumulative incidences of 0.4%, 1.1%, 1.6%, and 3.5% at 1, 3, 5, and 10 years, respectively. Lower body mass index (BMI), smoking, underlying interstitial lung disease, thoracotomy, development of postoperative pulmonary complications 30 days after surgery, and treatment with both chemotherapy and radiotherapy were independently associated with CPA development. The cumulative incidence of CPA after surgery was 3.5% at 10 years and showed a steadily increasing trend during long-term follow-up. Therefore, increased awareness regarding CPA development is needed especially in patients with risk factors.

It remains uncertain how long pure ground-glass nodules (pGGNs) detected on low dose computed tomography (LDCT) should be followed. Further studies with longer follow-up periods are needed to determine the optimal follow-up duration for pGGNs. What is the percentage of enlarging nodules among pGGNs that have remained stable for 10 years? This was a retrospective cohort study originating from subjects with pGGNs detected on LDCT scans between 1997 and 2006, whose natural courses were reported in 2013. We re-analyzed all the follow-up data until July 2022. The study subjects were followed by our institutional guidelines until they were no longer a candidate for definitive treatment. The growth of the pGGNs was defined as an increase in the diameter of the entire nodule by 2 mm or more or the appearance of new solid portions within the nodules. A total of 89 patients with 135 pGGNs were followed for a median of 193 months. Of 135 pGGNs, 23 (17.0%) increased in size, and the median time to the first detection of a size change was 71 months. Of the 23 growing pGGNs, 122 were detected on the first LDCT, and 13 were newly detected on the follow-up CT scan. An increase in size was observed within 5 years in 8 nodules (34.8%), between 5 and 10 years in 12 nodules (52.2%) and after 10 years in 3 nodules (13.0%). Fifteen nodules were histologically confirmed as adenocarcinoma by surgery. Among the 76 pGGNs stable for 10 years, 3 (3.9%) increased in size. Among pGGNs that remained stable for 10 years, 3.9% eventually grew, indicating that some pGGNs can grow even after a long period of stability. We suggest that pGGNs may need to be followed for more than 10 years to confirm growth.