Preparing for lung cancer surgery can be daunting. To feel confident about your procedure, it’s important to have a trusting relationship with your thoracic surgeon or surgical oncologist. Here’s what you need to know to find the right surgeon for you.

1. Learn About Your Lung Cancer Surgery

Before you can choose a surgeon, it’s important to understand exactly what your surgery will entail. The following surgeries are commonly used to treat lung cancer:

• Wedge resection — Removal of only a small amount of tissue, including the tumor
• Segmentectomy — Removal of one segment of one lobe in one lung
• Lobectomy or sleeve lobectomy — Removal of one whole lobe of one lung
• Pneumonectomy — Removal of one entire lung

These surgeries are all different, including in ways to prep and in recovery times. For instance, you’ll plan for a lobectomy differently from a wedge resection, and it may take you longer to recover.

Understanding your surgery is important when choosing a surgeon because you need to know what they’ll be doing before you can ask informed questions about their experience and process.

2. Find a Lung Cancer Specialist

You may feel more comfortable with the person performing your surgery if you understand their experience and background. Make sure any surgeon you choose to work with has experience performing lung cancer surgery if it’s available in your area.

You can use a search tool provided by the American College of Surgeons to begin finding nearby experts. There are also several resources resources available to help you check who in your area is licensed in the medical specialities that you need.

3. Ask for Recommendations

You don’t have to choose your lung cancer surgeon all by yourself. Your oncology team will likely recommend someone, though you’re not required to work with that person if you’d prefer someone else. A comprehensive cancer center will likely send you to the surgeon on staff. If they don’t offer recommendations, be sure to ask for them.

You can also ask your friends and family members if they, or anyone in their network, has had surgery for lung cancer. You can also try connecting with other people in your area through support groups or lung cancer organizations. They can likely tell you where to go and what to look for if they’ve had surgery.

MyLungCancerTeam can be a great resource for finding these people. Knowing that you’re seeing someone who others like can be reassuring, as it was for one MyLungCancerTeam member who shared, “I’m grateful to be seeing such a sweet surgeon based on what everyone says about him.”

Finally, you can read online reviews of many surgical providers. Focus on the overall picture, because sometimes reviews can swing very positive or very negative. Finding a well-reviewed surgeon can give you a lot of peace of mind. “Yay! I read the surgeon’s reviews, and he sounds incredible,” wrote one member.

4. Check Your Insurance

Ideally, everyone on your lung cancer team, including your thoracic surgeon, will be covered by your insurance. Otherwise, you might have to pay all the costs related to that practitioner out of pocket, which can get expensive.

To find out if a specific surgeon is covered, you should check with both their office and your insurance company. If you want a list of covered surgeons, you can usually search on your insurance company’s website or call them to get the names and numbers of those closest to you.

5. Look for Researchers

Some people prefer to find the top experts in the field, like surgeons who participate in lung cancer research, are associated with a research hospital, or teach at a medical school. Each of these qualifications may mean that a particular surgeon has an interest and a higher level of expertise in caring for people with lung cancer. It may also increase your chance of getting to participate in clinical trials for new treatments, if that’s something you’re interested in.

Note that these qualifications alone may not be enough to recommend a particular surgeon. They still need to be covered by your insurance, come with recommendations, and be someone you feel comfortable with.

6. Talk to the Surgeon

Have a conversation with each potential surgeon. You can do this in person or via telehealth. This gives you a chance to ask your questions and get the answers you need. You can ask about their experience, how their team works to help you, and which hospitals they use. Be sure to ask how many of these surgeries they have done and find out their success rate.

Asking questions of a medical professional can be intimidating, especially if you don’t know much about lung cancer. However, you can do some research ahead of time so you know what you want to ask them. One MyLungCancerTeam member said, “I have been researching a ton of information. I hope the surgeon is ready for me!”

Talking to a surgeon can also give you an idea of what they’re like to work with. You should feel like you can ask questions and that they’re willing to give you the time you need to be comfortable with the procedure. “When I met with my surgeon, he made me feel like everything was going to be all right,” one MyLungCancerTeam member shared. “I hope you get the same feeling from yours.”

7. Research Hospital and Care Center Quality

Every surgeon you work with will have a limited number of hospitals or cancer care centers where they do their work. This is called “admitting privileges.” You can’t have your surgery at a hospital where your cancer doctor or cancer care team doesn’t have admitting privileges.

Make sure you’re comfortable with the facility where your health care provider can work. If you don’t like the hospital or cancer center and your doctor doesn’t have privileges elsewhere, you’ll need to choose a different surgeon.

8. Compare Surgeons

If you aren’t sure about working with a particular surgeon, feel free to get a second opinion. This means going to another surgeon to see what they say and how it compares to what the first health professional said.

You can also get a second opinion if you don’t feel like your surgeon listens well or you’re unsure about their recommendation for the best treatment. In fact, you can seek a second opinion for a number of reasons, including just to make sure you get to hear all your lung cancer treatment options.

Seeking a second opinion can be key to finding a surgeon you connect with. This can be good for your mental health, quality of life, and overall sense of well-being. As one MyLungCancerTeam member put it succinctly, “I’m glad you liked your surgeon. That is so important.”

Talk With Others Who Understand

MyLungCancerTeam is the social network for people with lung cancer. On MyLungCancerTeam, more than 12,000 members come together to ask questions, give advice, and share their stories with others who understand life with lung cancer.

Are you wondering about choosing a surgeon or other medical professionals to work with on your lung cancer journey? What steps have you taken to ensure that you’re comfortable with your medical care? Share your experience in the comments below, or start a conversation by posting on your Activities page.