A recent retrospective study of 34,153 lung cancer patients showed that lung cancer patients who were first seen in thoracic surgery had a 51% higher rate of surgery than those who were first seen in a medical department, and surgery was the strongest predictor of overall survival. Unfortunately, only a small percentage of patients benefit from a first visit to thoracic surgery. This study suggests that further improvements in patient outcomes could be achieved by optimizing the flow of lung cancer patient visits.