About lung surgery
The most common reason to remove all or a portion of the lung is to diagnose and treat lung cancer. Any operation in which we open up the chest cavity is called a "thoracotomy". Sometimes we have a diagnosis before the thoracotomy and know what we expect to find. On other occasions, the operation itself is to find out what an x-ray abnormality means. Often, we can treat the problem at the same time. The body has a lot of built in reserve and is usually able to tolerate removal of all or part of a lung without too much difficulty. 

What is the operation like?
The operation is done with a patient asleep and lying on their side. The incision goes between the ribs on the side, and may curve up along the spine in the back. Sometimes it is necessary to divide or remove part of a rib. If appropriate, all or a portion of the lung is removed. The size and location of the lump or tumor determines how much lung has to be removed. Sometimes a small tumor in a critical location makes removal of the entire lung necessary.

After the surgery on the lungs has been done, clear plastic drainage tubes are put in the chest to drain unwanted fluid and air that may accumulate. The incision is closed with stitches around the ribs and muscle, and dissolving stitches in the skin.  This operation takes between two and four hours.

After the operation
Patients routinely  go to the recovery room to wake up after the operation, and then  to the intensive care unit. It is not unusual to stay there for a few days. 

A large part of the recovery revolves around breathing treatments and  exercises. These will help the lungs recover their normal function, and prevent pneumonia. Most patients are in the hospital about a week if all goes well. 

We are very concerned about our patients having adequate pain control after the operation. Whenever possible, we recommend use of an "Epidural Catheter". This is inserted by the anesthesiologist and allows him to administer pain medication directly to the spinal cord and central nervous system. This is best method we have for pain control, and is very effective. We usually leave the catheter in for about five days. After that, the pain level is usually low enough that oral pain medications are adequate.

At Evergreen Surgical we are very experienced with this kind of surgery, and have been very pleased with the rapid recovery of our patients.