Minimally Invasive and Robotic Surgery for Thoracic Cancers

City of Hope surgeons use minimally invasive, video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS), and robotic surgery to diagnose and treat cancer in the chest. We use these techniques routinely for all stages of lung cancer, esophageal cancer, and thymoma treatment.

 

Traditional, open techniques for surgery in the chest require a large incision as well as spreading of the ribs. Robotic surgery allows City of Hope surgeons to perform the same operations, but with smaller incisions and without spreading the ribs.

 

This gives robotic surgery the following advantages over traditional open procedures:

At City of Hope, the majority of our lung, esophageal and thymoma surgeries are performed robotically.

 

For diagnosis and staging, City of Hope also offers endoscopic, less-invasive procedures, including electromagnetic-guided navigational bronchoscopy, endobronchial ultrasound, endoscopic ultrasound, and endoscopic mucosal resection.