Heart Center

Thoracic Surgery

The healthcare professionals of the Section of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery offer comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic care for cancerous and non-cancerous diseases of the airway, blood vessels, chest wall, esophagus, heart, lungs, and mediastinum.


Services offered through Thoracic Surgery include:

  • Airway procedures
  • Bronchoscopic examination/bronchoscopy
  • Tracheal stent placement
  • Tracheal tumor laser ablation and resection
  • Chest wall procedures
  • Biopsies - needle and open
  • Resection and reconstruction
  • Rotation of muscle flaps
  • Prosthetics placement
  • Esophageal procedures for diseases including cancer
  • Endoscopic management of obstructions
  • laser removal
  • stent placement
  • Functional reconstruction and restoration (swallowing)
  • Resection
  • Lung procedures for diseases including cancer, emphysema and pulmonary hypertension
  • Bronchoscopy
  • Lung-sparing surgery
  • Mediastinoscopy
  • Minimally-invasive thoracic surgery
  • Multidisciplinary thoracic oncology program

In the multidisciplinary thoracic oncology program, thoracic surgeons conference with medical and radiation oncologists to determine an individualized course of treatment best suited for each cancer patient.

  • Robotic (video-assisted) surgery
  • Less blood loss
  • Less recuperation time
  • Minimally invasive
  • Sympathetic nerve procedures for hyperhydrosis/excessive sweating
  • Sympathectomy/thorascopic division of the nerves


Suggested Links

Glossary of terms
presented by The Society of Thoracic Surgeons

Patient information
presented by The Society of Thoracic Surgeons

Spanish language patient information
presented by The Society of Thoracic Surgeons