Keyhole surgery that protects every breath.
The lungs do not forgive waste. Thoracic surgery here is built on one principle: remove the tumour completely, keep every segment of breathing capacity that can be kept — and reach it through the smallest possible doorway.
What is thoracic cancer surgery?
It treats lung cancer, masses of the mediastinum — the space between the lungs, including thymoma — disease of the pleura, and tumours of the chest wall. Each demands a different balance between cure and capacity.
The quiet revolution is VATS — video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. Through two or three small cuts, a full lobectomy can be done without spreading the ribs. Less pain, fewer complications, and chemotherapy — when needed — starts sooner.
A word about smoking. It changes risk; it does not change how you will be treated here. Assessment and cessation support come without judgment, because judgment helps no one heal.
Signs that deserve a scan
A cough is usually just a cough. But some patterns earn a chest X-ray or CT within days — and in lung disease, earlier imaging means smaller treatment.
- ①A cough lasting more than three weeks.
- ②Breathlessness that changes without explanation.
- ③Blood-streaked sputum, even once.
- ④Chest pain confined to one side, persistent or recurring.
- ⑤Hoarseness of the voice beyond a simple cold.
- ⑥Pneumonia recurring on the same side — always investigated.
- ⑦Clubbing of the fingertips — a subtle but telling sign.
- ⑧Unexplained loss of weight or appetite.
Cancers treated here
◆Early-Stage Lung Cancer
Nodules and small tumours — often curable with segmentectomy, keeping the most lung.
◆Locally Advanced Lung Cancer
Larger or node-positive disease, sequenced with oncology before and after surgery.
◆Mediastinal Masses & Thymoma
Tumours of the central chest approached with careful vascular planning.
◆Pleural Disease & Mesothelioma
Effusions managed definitively; mesothelioma planned with multidisciplinary care.
◆Chest Wall Tumours
Resection with reconstruction that restores both structure and appearance.
◆Smoking-Related Concerns
Assessment and screening discussed plainly — and without judgment.
Operations performed here
- ◆VATS lobectomy & segmentectomyKeyhole removal of lobe or segment — the default consideration where anatomy allows.
- ◆Open lobectomy & pneumonectomyReserved for tumours that genuinely require the larger approach.
- ◆Sleeve resectionsTumour removed from the airway while the lobe beneath it is kept.
- ◆Thymectomy & mediastinal excisionCentral chest masses cleared with nerve and vessel preservation.
- ◆PleurodesisRecurrent fluid settled permanently, often through keyhole access.
- ◆Chest wall resection & reconstructionDefects rebuilt for protection, posture and appearance.
From first visit to full recovery
CT & PET staging
The nodule characterised and the whole chest mapped before anything else.
Biopsy first
Tissue before treatment — no operation proceeds on assumption.
Lung-function testing
Breathing capacity measured, so resection size fits the person.
Tumour board review
Medical and radiation oncology agree the sequence upfront.
Surgery
VATS wherever suitable; open when open serves you better.
Breathing rehab & surveillance
Physiotherapy from day one; scheduled scans thereafter.
Questions families ask first
For most early tumours, VATS offers the same cancer clearance with less pain and faster recovery. Some tumours — large, central, or previously treated — are genuinely safer done open. The choice follows your scans, not fashion.
Most patients return to their usual activities after recovering from surgery. Lung-function testing beforehand ensures the remaining lung can carry the load — this is why it happens before, not after, decisions.
Almost always. Rarely, a highly suspicious nodule goes straight to surgery — but that is a considered exception, explained fully. Treating tissue we have not examined is not our practice.
Node involvement changes the sequence, not the commitment: chemotherapy or radiation often comes first, then surgery reassessed. Many node-positive patients still reach curative pathways.
If you can, yes — even a few weeks reduces wound and lung complications measurably. Support is offered as part of preparation, quietly and without lecture.