Minimally invasive surgery is the trend of today’s surgical development. Minimally invasive thoracic surgery, represented by television thoracoscopic surgery (VATS), has been rapidly promoted since its clinical application in 1990 and has become another major technological revolution in thoracic surgery since the introduction of extracorporeal circulation technology. In the past few years, thoracoscopic lobectomy has been developed as a new and difficult procedure and has been recognized by the academic community. However, thoracoscopic esophageal cancer surgery has been in a low stage. The Department of Thoracic Surgery of Luoyang First People’s Hospital Hospital has been the first to carry out thoracoscopic esophageal cancer resection successfully since November 2010, becoming the earliest hospital in western Henan Province to carry out this technology. It is welcomed by thoracic surgeons and patients. Total laparoscopic esophagectomy refers to freeing the stomach firstly through laparoscopy and then using thoracoscopy to free the esophagus and parallel intrathoracic gastroesophageal anastomosis. This technique can make the complex surgery that originally had to be done through two large incisions in the chest and abdomen, but can be done through only a few small holes. The surgical technique is more complex and difficult. However, compared with traditional open-chest esophageal cancer resection, this method has the advantages of less trauma, less pain and faster recovery, while the surgical and oncological principles followed in the treatment are the same as those of open-chest surgery. At present, only a few hospitals in China can carry out this technique. We hope that through the promotion of this technique, more patients with esophageal cancer can benefit from it.