Pleural effusion in a pt with lung cancer. do you drain it?

Absolutely: Two reasons to drain it are for diagnosis, are there cancer cells in the effusion, this is bad. Bumps you up to stage 4. Two, therapeutically it will be easier to breathe if the effusion is removed.

Yes : The fluid should be drained to alleviate shortness of breath. A pleurodesis can be performed to prevent the fluid from coming back. This can be done using minimally invasive surgery or thoracoscopy.

Only if symptomatic: High likelihood for recurrence so only if severe short of breath.