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Thoracic (Chest) Surgery

Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Thoracic (Chest) Surgery program offers the latest surgical procedures for both benign (non-cancerous) and malignant (cancerous) diseases of the chest including the tracheobronchial tree (airway), lungs, pleura, esophagus, diaphragm, chest wall and mediastinum.

Thoracic surgeons, Matthew G. Blum, MD and Alberto de Hoyos, MD, lead this highly specialized team, which includes anesthesiologists, nurses, pain service specialists, respiratory care specialists, and a support staff that provides integrated care designed specifically for the care of the thoracic (chest) surgery patient.

Drs. Blum and de Hoyos recognize the benefits that minimally invasive surgery offers to the patient - less pain, less scarring, less tissue injury, lower infection rates, and shorter hospital stays. Based on these benefits the Thoracic (Chest) Surgery program performs over 80 percent of all their surgeries via a minimally invasive approach.

Within the Thoracic (Chest) Surgery program, individual patient cases are discussed weekly at multidisciplinary conferences that include specialists in thoracic oncology, radiation oncology, radiology, pathology, pulmonology, and gastroenterology. This conference strives to optimize curative (to cure) and palliative (to provide relief) treatments, minimize unnecessary testing, and to offer clinical research trial participation to appropriate candidates.

Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Thoracic (Chest) Surgery program is a member of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University. In 1998, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) awarded the Lurie Cancer Center the highly competitive "comprehensive" designation - reflecting the Cancer Center's dedication to the highest standards of cancer research, patient care, prevention and education. Today, the Lurie Cancer Center is one of only 41 cancer centers in the nation to hold this NCI designation. In addition, the Lurie Cancer Center is a founding member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, an exclusive alliance of 21 of the nation's leading cancer centers.

Thoracic (Chest) Service Contact Information
For more information regarding Thoracic (Chest) Surgery at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, call (312) 695-3800 or (877) 926-4664, or request an appointment online.

Visit the Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Health Learning Center and Alberto Culver Women's Health Learning Center. These state-of-the-art health information libraries are among the largest hospital-based learning facilities of their kind. For more information call (312) 926-5465.

Review Date: 06/08