Lack of Association between Sputum Atypia and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Mortality

Sputum cytologic atypia is not predictive of death from COPD. As sputum cytologic grades of moderate or worse atypia are associated with a significant increase in the risk for lung cancer and do not denote a group with increased competing death rates from COPD, patients with sputum atypia are a good high risk group in whom chemoprevention and early detection studies can be conducted.