A call for standardization of training and certification of thoracoscopic surgery for lung cancer

Since its advent in 1865, thoracoscopy has come a long way, as it is now been widely adopted for a number intrathoracic surgical procedures on the heart, lungs, thymus, pleura, and sympathetic trunk in both adult and pediatric patients (1). Increasingly complex, extensive, and otherwise challenging operations, particularly in the realm of thoracic oncology, are being successfully completed with relative dexterity through a minimally invasive approach.