Minimally invasive thoracoscopic lung cancer surgery? The surgical pathway for lung cancer is usually a standard posterior posterolateral thoracic incision. Open thoracotomy, which preserves some of the chest muscles, has been developed to reduce the incision and postoperative pain. In the early days of thoracoscopic surgery, the main focus was on exploration, separation of thoracic adhesions and biopsy. In 1992, Lewis first reported partial lung resection by VATS for lung malignancies, and in 1993, Roviaro performed lobectomy with hilar lymph node dissection for stage 1 lung cancer. Since then, the number of reports on thoracoscopic surgery for lung cancer has increased and surgical techniques have become more sophisticated. VATS surgery is superior for reducing trauma and the impact of surgery on the patient’s immune function, especially for some elderly patients with low cardiopulmonary function.