Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery or VATS is a surgical procedure used to remove small lung cancer tumors. The procedure is performed if the tumor is limited to a single lobe of the lung, so it is usually reserved for early stage cancers.
During VATS, your surgeon makes three small cuts in the chest wall. Then a special camera and surgical tools are inserted and the cancerous tissue is removed. People who get VATS usually do very well, although there is a small chance of complications such as air leaks, excessive bleeding and release of tumor cells into the chest cavity. That’s why it is important that you find a surgeon who is not only skilled, but also has the experience to know when a situation is not amenable to VATS.
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Dr. Raja Flores is Chairman of the Department of Thoracic Surgery for the Mount Sinai Health System. Read More
Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery or VATS is a surgical procedure used to remove small lung cancer tumors. The procedure is performed if the tumor is limited to a single lobe of the lung, so it is usually reserved for early stage cancers.
During VATS, your surgeon makes three small cuts in the chest wall. Then a special camera and surgical tools are inserted and the cancerous tissue is removed. People who get VATS usually do very well, although there is a small chance of complications such as air leaks, excessive bleeding and release of tumor cells into the chest cavity. That’s why it is important that you find a surgeon who is not only skilled, but also has the experience to know when a situation is not amenable to VATS.
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