OBJECTIVE This research was designed to investigate the changes of inflammatory factors in patients after resection of lung adenocarcinoma with propofol versus etomidate. METHODS A total of 104 patients who underwent resection of lung adenocarcinoma in our hospital were divided into a propofol group (group A, n=50) and an etomidate group (group B, n=54). The levels of CRP and IL-6 at different time points and the changes of blood gas indexes at 10 min before and after operation were observed in both groups. Their pain score and quality of life score were compared. Besides, we observed the wake-up time, tracheal extubation time and the incidence of adverse reactions. RESULTS The anesthesia recovery and tracheal extubation time in group B were shorter than those in group A (P<0.05). After 10-minutes of spontaneous breathing, PaO2 and SaO2 in group B were higher than those in group A (P<0.05), and PaCO2 was lower (P<0.05); compared with group A. The incidence of adverse reactions and the levels of inflammatory factors in group B were lower than those in group A after operation (both P<0.05). The quality of life of patients in group B after operation was better than that in group A (P<0.05). There was no marked difference in VAS scores between groups. CONCLUSIONS Etomidate has better anesthetic effect than propofol in lung adenocarcinoma resection, leading to better stabilization of the vital signs of patients and it also has higher safety.