Invited editorial on “Intraoperative conversion during video-assisted thoracoscopy does not constitute a treatment failure”

Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) has advanced thoracic surgery (1,2). Compared with classic thoracotomy, patients who undergo VATS have less postoperative pain and faster recovery (3). In addition, postoperative complications, mortality, and oncologic concerns associated with VATS are not inferior to those of classic methods (4,5). For these reasons, VATS has become a major trend in many medical institutions that perform intensive thoracic surgery, and many thoracic operations have been replaced by thoracoscopic surgery (4).