UCSD’s surgical team has more than 18 years of experience with thousands of lung cancer patients. Many studies have shown that the best surgical outcomes occur in medical centers with a high volume of cases.
If your lung tumor has not spread beyond the lung, surgery is frequently the first choice of treatment to remove all the cancer. A variety of techniques may be used, with the choice dependent upon the size of the tumor, its location and your overall health. The surgical team also works closely with your medical oncologist and radiation oncologist, as needed, to ensure that your therapy is ideal for your specific case. For example, in some cases, radiation or chemotherapy will shrink the tumor to assist in its removal by the surgeon.
Just one example of UCSD’s surgical expertise in lung cancer is video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) which is performed at only a handful of centers in the U.S. The surgeon uses a video camera to help visualize and operate upon the lung, with surgical incisions much smaller than those required for other forms of surgery.