Editorial: Minimally invasive cardiothoracic surgery: cost-effectiveness, prognostic factors, and outcomes

Over the years, minimally invasive cardiothoracic surgery (MICTS) has gained significant traction, largely due to its benefits in reducing postoperative pain, lower risk of infection and hospital length of stay (1,2). Despite initial concerns regarding the challenges of limited exposure in complex procedures, longer operative times, and patient safety, the refinement of surgical techniques and the In their study on non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), Hurley et al. compared robotic-assisted and VATS lymph node dissection and showed that in robotic operations lymph node dissection was more extensive compared to VATS (p=0.0002). This was in line with the recent ROMAN, RAVAL, and RVLob randomized trials(4-6). However, evidence is still controversial in literature, as highlighted by a meta-analysis of retrospective studies that suggested no significant differences between the two approaches (7). This crucial topic in NSCLC among others was reviewed by Patel Nowadays, minimally invasive surgery is increasingly considered in cardiothoracic surgery, but certain drawbacks associated with this technique must be carefully weighed when selecting the appropriate surgical approach for each patient.