Thoracic Surgery

Health City Cayman Islands Thoracic Surgery Services

Thoracic surgery refers to surgery that is performed inside the chest, also called the thoracic cavity, where the heart and lungs are located. Our thoracic surgeons perform delicate thoracic surgeries including peumonectomy, lobectomy, segmentectomy, wedge resection and other intricate procedures.

Thoracic surgery procedures are among the most complicated in the surgical field. They involve the use of some of the most precise, advanced medical technology used in surgery today. Surgical procedures are utilized for the diagnosis of cancer and other diseases, to improve function of the heart and lungs, and to relieve pain and suffering in patients. We provide patients with gold standard performance in this highly technical, specialized field, and have performed thousands of successful complex thoracic surgeries that have improved the health and quality of life of these patients.


This is the surgical removal of a lung. It is most often used to treat lung cancer when other treatments and surgeries have proven ineffective. In some cases it is the most appropriate treatment for a tumour located near the centre of the lung that affects the pulmonary artery or veins. Pneumonectomies may also be performed on patients with noncancerous diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
This is removal of a lobe or section of the lung. Lobectomies are performed to prevent the spread of cancer to other parts of the lung or areas of the body, and to treat patients with noncancerous COPD. To perform a lobectomy, the surgeon makes an incision between the ribs to expose the lung while the patient is under general anaesthesia. The chest cavity is examined and the diseased lung tissue is removed. A drainage tube is inserted in the chest to drain air, fluid, and blood out of the chest cavity, after which the incision is closed.
This procedure surgically removes a portion of any organ or gland in order to treat disease and/or to remove a tumour. The procedure has many names including segmental resection, wide excision, lumpectomy, tumourectomy, quadrantectomy, and partial mastectomy. Common organs that have segments are the breasts, lungs, and liver. When cancer is evident in only one part of an organ, removing that segment may control the cancer and prevent more extensive surgery. Removal of a wedge-shaped piece of lung smaller than a lobe is referred to as wedge resection.
Decortication Of Lung
This is the surgical removal of tissue that overlies the diaphragm, lungs, and chest wall when it is restricting the patient’s ability to breath. Decortication allows the lung to expand to a greater capacity. One of the major benefits of decortication is the body’s quick response to re-expansion of the lungs. This is an effective surgical procedure in carefully selected patients.
This is a surgical procedure used to cause the layers of the lung lining to adhere together. In select lung cancer patients, pleurodesis may be used to prevent recurring build-up of fluid surrounding the lungs. It can also be used to prevent a collapsed lung from recurring. A chemical or medication is inserted into the space between the two layers of the pleura, causing inflammation that effectively glues the layers together.
This is surgical removal of the thymus gland, which has been shown to have a role in the development of a condition called myasthenia gravis. There are three main surgical approaches for thymectomy, including:

    1. Transsternal: This is a frontal approach that goes through the sternum to remove the thymus.
    1. Transcervical: This is a frontal, horizontal approach that goes through the lower neck to access and remove the thymus.
    1. Video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS): This approach uses small incisions in the chest (right side or left), and thin, flexible scopes with fibre optics that allow the surgeon to see and remove the thymus.
Resection Of Mediastinal Tumours

The mediastinum is the area of the chest cavity surrounded by the breastbone in front, the spine in back, and the lungs on each side.  When cancerous tumours occur in this area they must be removed to prevent local tissue damage and metastasis of the cancer. Without removal or treatment, the cancer may metastasize (spread) to other areas of the body or compress organs in the chest, such as the heart, lungs, esophagus, or spinal cord.

Lung Biopsy
Biopsies are an important diagnostic tool. A lung needle biopsy is a used to remove a piece of lung tissue for examination, usually to rule out the presence of cancer. It is performed in cases where there is an abnormal condition near the surface of the lung, in the lung itself, or on the chest wall. The biopsy is usually done following the detection of abnormalities seen on CT scans or chest x-rays.

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