Thoracic Surgery

Billings Clinic Thoracic Surgeons perform operations on the lungs, chest cavity and chest wall. Billings Clinic is a regional and national leader in Thoracic Oncology and benign disease processes.

We provide high-quality regional lung cancer surveillance and thoracic oncology care for patients in Montana, Wyoming, North & South Dakota.

We partner with local and regional healthcare providers to optimize patient outcomes. By working together, we can provide you streamlined, individualized, patient-centered care.

Our vision is to provide early detection and diagnosis with rapid, world-class, cutting-edge technical care while being the first in the state to directly mentor regional partners to optimize individualized thoracic oncology outcomes across the region.

We schedule needed tests and visits with physician specialists all in one day. Care team members you may meet with include:

Surgeons
Oncologists
Radiation Oncologists
Pulmonologists
Patient Care Navigators
Multidisciplinary Tumor Board

For answers to any of your questions or for more information, please visit with members of your thoracic surgery care team.

Thoracic Surgery Procedures

Billings Clinic thoracic surgeons provide surgical evaluation and treatment for pulmonary, chest cavity and chest wall conditions related to:

Surgical treatment of cancer
Collapsed lung repair
Removal of diseased or infected lung tissue
Treatment of pulmonary embolism (blood clot located in an artery of the lungs)
Treatment of fluid buildup around the lungs
Minimally-Invasive Thoracic Surgery
Minimally-Invasive Lung Cancer Surgery
Minimally-Invasive Esophageal Cancer Surgery
Minimally-Invasive Thymus/Mediastinal Mass resections
Minimally-Invasive Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernias
Minimally-Invasive Diaphragmatic Hernia Repairs
Complex Thoracic/Lung Vascular Malformation Repairs
Other advanced techniques such as Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery (VATS), robotic-assisted surgery and minimally-invasive are utilized when appropriate.

daVinci Surgical Robotic Surgery Procedures

Some thoracic surgical procedures at Billings Clinic are performed utilizing the da Vinci surgical system:

Robotic Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery – removal of a lobe of the lung (Lobectomy)
Removal of part of the lung (Wedge Resection)
Lung biopsy
Biopsy of membrane tissue around the lung (Pleural biopsy)
Creating an opening in the membrane that surrounds the heart (also known as the pericardial window)
Removal of the thymus gland (Thymectomy)
Diaphragm plication

Monarch Robotic-Assisted Bronchoscopy Platform

The Monarch™ Platform using Robotic-Assisted Bronchoscopy allows our physicians to potentially diagnose small nodules during early stages of lung cancer. This procedure is similar to traditional bronchoscopy and provides advanced precision and control that comes from robotic technology.

The Monarch Platform combines traditional camera views into the lung with computer assisted navigation based on 3-D models of your own lung anatomy. For the first time, we have the benefit of a platform designed to provide bronchoscopic visualization throughout the procedure.

Billings Clinic is the first in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho and North Dakota to offer the the Monarch™ Robotic-Assisted Bronchoscopy Platform.

Lung Cancer Screening

Billings Clinic offers low-dose lung CT scans as a screening test for lung cancer. Screening may detect cancer earlier, before symptoms occur. Lung screening is recommended for individuals who:

• Are still smoking or quit smoking within the past 15 years?

• Have a 30-pack year or more history of smoking? A pack year is calculated by multiplying the number of packs smoked per day by the number of years an individual has smoked.

Learn more about Lung Cancer Screening or contact us at
406-238-5864 (LUNG), Monday-Friday, 8 am to 5 pm for screening assessment and scheduling.

Schedule an Appointment

You or your physician may give us a call to schedule your thoracic surgery consultation or appointment.

406-238-5864 (LUNG) or 800-332-7156

Society of Thoracic Surgeons National Database

Billings Clinic Billings Clinic is a participant in the Society of Thoracic Surgeons National Database. By participating, our cardiac, thoracic and vascular surgeons are committed to providing quality care and patient safety to those we serve.