Mechanism and treatment strategy of N2 lymph node metastasis in T1 NSCLC

Lung cancer has the highest morbidity and mortality rates. Approximately 20% of patients with stage T1 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have mediastinal (N2) lymph node metastasis. The mechanism underlying N2 lymph node metastasis in stage T1 NSCLC remains unclear. To explore this mechanism, T1N0M0 and T1N2M0 NSCLC samples were subjected to single-cell sequencing. Overall design: Ten NSCLC samples, including T1N0M0 (n = 4), T1N2M0 (n = 3), and three metastatic N2 lymph node samples from T1N2M0 patients were collected for single-cell sequencing. Through cell composition comparison and differential analysis between T1N2M0 and T1N0M0 samples, we explained the mechanisms of N2 lymph node metastasis in T1-stage NSCLC and proposed corresponding therapeutic strategies.