Surgery Department Phone: (213) 413-3000 (ask the operator for Surgery)

The purpose of thoracic surgery is to treat diseased or injured organs in the thorax, including the esophagus (muscular tube that passes food to the stomach), trachea (windpipe that branches to form the right bronchus and the left bronchus), pleura (membranes that cover and protect the lung), mediastinum (area separating the left and right lungs), chest wall, diaphragm, heart, and lungs.

At Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center we perform surgeries for lung cancer, chest trauma, esophageal cancer, and emphysema. Two common incisional approaches to thoracic surgery include sternotomy (creating an incision through and down the breastbone) and thoractomy (creating an side of the chest).