press release
ATEP Bulletin
Official Newsletter of the
Asia Thoracoscopic Surgery Education Program
- Volume 1, lssue 1 April 2015 -
CONTENTS
1. Editor's Note
2. Lead Article: VATS is Asia (Where do we go from here? )
3. Meet the Expert: Jheon Sanghoon
4. Featured event: The 6th ATEP Thoracoscopic Surgery Workshop
5. ATEP Calendar
6. ATEP News
Editor in Chief : Alan Sihoe (Hong Kong)
Associate Editors : Kamran Ali (India)
Hye-seon Kim (Korea)
Peter Yu (Hong Kong)
Correspondence to : adls1@hku.hk
Editor's Note
Welcome to the first issue of the ATEP Bulletin
The Asia Thoracoscopic Surgery Education Program (ATEP) is dedicated to promoting the highest standards of
minimally invasive thoracic surgery across Asia. Every year, it organizes many surgical workshops, academic conferences, and educational activities across a variety of multi-media platforms. For these efforts to reach their full potential in sharing knowledge and skills with all Asian surgeons, they need to be publicized, and both members and friends of ATEP need to be kept informed of them.
Out of this need, the idea of the ATEP Bulletin was conceived by Prof Jheon Sanghoon – the President and Founder of ATEP. The ATEP Bulletin is a quarterly publication, and is the official newsletter of ATEP.
The ATEP Bulletin is a quarterly publication, and is the official newsletter of ATEP. Its primary objective is to keep readers informed of the many activities that ATEP has been engaged in, and which ATEP will organize or participate in in the near future. In each issue, leading issues in minimally invasive thoracic surgery will be addressed, with prominent surgeons in Asia and around the world being invited to share their thoughts and opinions. To start off in this issue, Prof Anthony Yim gives his thoughts on the future of Video Assisted Thoracic Surgery (VATS). The ATEP Bulletin will also bring the leaders within ATEP – all world class surgeons – closer to the membership through in-depth interviews. Each interviewed expert will also be asked to share an important tip for trainees in 50 words or less. For this issue, Prof Jheon gives a personal and moving account of how he overcame the odds to make VATS a success in Korea. In each issue, readers will also find a calendar of ATEP-related events and a section on ‘What’s New’ within ATEP.
The ATEP Bulletin is therefore an essential means for ATEP to educate and communicate with its members. It acts as a vehicle to invite members to participate actively in all of ATEP’s activities, and also serves as a forum for members to join the dialogue on how ATEP can best serve their needs. To this end, the Editorial Staff and I would greatly welcome feedback from all members and friends of ATEP about both the ATEP Bulletin and about ATEP in general. If there are any issues or topics that you would like to see covered in future issues – or if you would even like to contribute – please do not hesitate to contact us directly. Above all, we hope your participation will make this ATEP Bulletin not only ATEP’s bulletin, but truly your bulletin!
I look forward to hearing from you all … and to meeting you in an upcoming ATEP event! In the meantime, please enjoy this first issue of the ATEP Bulletin!
Alan D. L. Sihoe
Editor-in-Chief, ATEP Bulletin
Clinical Associate Professor, The University of Hong Kong
Chief of Thoracic Surgery, The University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital
VATS in Asia: Where do we go from here?
In this inaugural edition of the ATEP Bulletin, Prof Anthony PC Yim - Honorary Clinical Professor at the Department of Surgery of The Chinese University of Hong Kong - shares his views on the “Past and Future of VATS” with Dr Kamran Ali.
PHOTO: As the pioneer of VATS in Asia, Prof Anthony Yim (left) has mentored many of the leading minimally invasive thoracic surgeons in the world today – including Dr Alan Sihoe, the Editor of the ATEP Bulletin (right)
When Jacobeus in 1910 peeped into the thoracic cavity via a cystoscope using simple candle light for illumination, little would
he have thought that this was going to be the way surgeons around the world would routinely look into the chest 100 years in the future. From those elementary days of diagnostic thoracoscopy to the present era of complex thoracoscopic resections, Video Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery (VATS) has indeed come a long way.
Prof Anthony Yim is widely recognized as one of the pioneers of VATS in Asia. At the 1st ATEP Symposium held on November 15. 2014 in Beijing, Prof Yim delivered a lecture entitled “The History and Future
of VATS” – a topic perhaps he alone is most qualified to speak on.
He fondly recollects how VATS in Asia has grown from when he hosted the 1st Asia Pacific Workshop on Minimally Invasive Thoracic Surgery in November 1996 in Hong Kong, to its stunning success today. “VATS is now the standard of care. It has marked the beginning of a close partnership between surgeons and the industry,” Prof. Yim told ATEP Bulletin. “I believe new directions in the field are visible and they are a result of advances in surgical approach, innovative technology and anesthetic techniques.”
to reduce the surgical footprint for the patient has given birth to a plethora of new ideas and techniques. These have led to the modern thoracic surgeon successfully ‘minimizing’ each operation in terms of the bulk of the instruments, and the size and number of the ports used.
Needlescopic VATS, for instance, has now become a part of many a thoracic surgeon’s armamentarium. This technique’s miniaturization of the working instruments has led to potentially better recovery for patients.
Uniportal VATS is another wonderful example of how the conventional 3-port strategy can be evolved by reducing the number of ports. Uniportal VATS has been a revolution in the way thoracic surgeons operate, and this approach has met with tremendous interest the world over, with scope for further improvement and increasing global acceptance.
As someone who has experienced the trials, tribulations and ultimate success of VATS in Asia over the years, Prof Yim is uniquely qualified to comment on the rise of these ‘next generation’ VATS approaches. While he sees the potential of these techniques, Prof Yim points out: “The limitations of the Uniportal approach reside in current instrument designs, but this also gives impetus to the industry to develop more procedure-specific and user-friendly instruments.”
When we talk about innovations in thoracic surgery, robotics is yet another exciting technology that is gradually catching the attention of a number of surgeons. Over the years, it has proved to be an excellent tool for operating on mediastinal pathologies. In Asia, robot assisted thoracic surgery has yet to find mainstream acceptance due to the multi-million dollar initial purchase, costly consumables, bulky design, and lack of tactile feedback. However, with new manufacturers soon planning to enter the market, we can hope to see competition force a change in how the robotic industry addresses these concerns of surgeons and patients. Prof Yim is excited by upcoming developments in robotics, such as the Insertable Robotic Effector Platform (IREP), and the possibility of robotics being incorporated into the Uniportal VATS approach: “IREP is a low-cost, minimally invasive, compact system that includes state-of-the-art robotic arms and surgical instrumentation with 3-D stereo-vision imaging and a suite of intelligent software for control and visualization to assist the surgeon.”
In the quest to find the ‘Holy Grail’ of minimally invasive thoracic surgery, Prof Yim also highlights the need for the thoracic surgeon to think ‘outside of the box’, such as be developing Natural Orifice Totally Endoscopic Surgery, and awake or non-intubated VATS. He also points out the importance of constant improvements and refining in the designs of even the most basic surgical instruments in driving the future of VATS, including knotting devices, staplers, thoracoscopes and video cameras. With so much happening, the future does looks very bright for the generation next.
So what lies ahead? Have we reached the pinnacle of minimally invasive thoracic surgery? For Prof Yim the answer is clear: “The quest for ever less invasive approach continues.” Surgery is a lifelong vocation where there is no such thing as the ‘best’, but only a never-ending search for something ‘better’ for the sake of our patients.
Meet the Expert: Jheon Sanghoon
In every issue of the ATEP Bulletin, a leader in minimally invasive thoracic surgery in Asia will be interviewed and invited to share his/her wisdom with trainees and ATEP members.
For this first issue, Prof Jheon Sanghoon –
the Founder and President of ATEP – spoke to
Dr. Peter Yu, and his heartfelt recollections of a personal journey in VATS is truly inspiring
PHOTO: As President of ATEP, Prof Jheon Sanghoon travels throughout Asia promoting the highest standards of minimally invasive
thoracic surgery
JS : Prof Jheon Sanghoon, Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Seoul National University Hospital, Bundang, Korea
PY : Dr. Peter Yu, Assistant Editor and interviewer
PY: Prof Jheon, how did you get to know about thoracoscopic surgery?
JS: When I first started VATS, frankly speaking, I didn’t even know what it was. It was in 1985, in my first year cardiothoracic surgery residency after finishing 1 year of internship. As many of you know, first-year residents live and breathe in the hospital, and I was no exception. One day, I decided to clean out the cluttered cabinet of our department office. In the very back of the cabinet, I found an unfamiliar device which was a ‘thoracoscope’. I was instantly fascinated by this device and connected it to a light source, and flushed water through the suction channel. It was different from the current video-thoracoscope, but a different world opened before my eyes through the lens. It appeared to be a wonderful tool, yet no one was there to teach me what to do with it. My first attempt was using the thoracoscope to cleanse the empyema cavity. There were many chronic empyema patients in Korea back then when I was a resident, so it seemed like the perfect start. After removing the chest tube, I would insert the thoracoscope for a visual examination inside the empyema cavity for irrigation and suction. The clinical outcome was far better than patients managed solely with chest tubes, and although I didn’t know it at the time, my early attempts of utilizing the thoracoscope were identical to the first thoracoscope application using the cystoscope by Dr. Jacobaeus.
PY: How did you get proficient at using this useful ‘new’ device?
JS: After completing three years of mandatory military service as a medical officer, at the end of the residency program, I received my first post as a clinical instructor at a university hospital in 1994. To my amazement, video-laparoscopic cholecystectomy was already widespread in the General Surgery department. I was determined to learn, and started observing laparoscopic surgeries done by abdominal surgeons. I made my own make-shift training box out of an instant noodle box with a camcorder and practiced over the weekends alone at the department office. I connected the camcorder to the television and tried grabbing objects hidden below the noodle box. The shoddy and primitive noodle box did its job as my fumbling hands became more confident with a stronger sense of directionality. I would go to the operation room to practice using the General Surgery department’s “high-tech” training boxes over the weekend.
PY: What was the first VATS operation that you were confident enough to tackle as a chief surgeon? How did you feel about it?
JS: My first VATS case was a young pneumothorax patient. The operation went well, but the patient needed reoperation from intercostal artery bleeding at the trocar port site. My first self-taught VATS attempt was half-successful, but in turn, led to a great life lesson, which is to apply precision and attention to the simplest surgeries yet never retract or avoid learning or trying new things.
PY: Who was your supervisor during your training? What did you most appreciate about him?
JS: I didn’t have a mentor who specialized in VATS when I first started, but I do have a senior staff who holds a special place in my heart. Professor Jong Tae Lee is a cardiac surgeon, but he has supported me both directly and indirectly throughout my career.
He expressed unwavering support and endless encouragement, and instilled confidence in me to become a trailblazer when I first started VATS. He shared my challenges and listened to my woes from my viewpoint, providing guidance every step of the way. Being a surgeon can be a lonely job. Find a mentor to share your thoughts with. This person does not have to be in the same field, nor the same hospital nor country, so long as you can speak heart to heart.
PY: Which part of your training in thoracoscopic surgery was the most difficult?
JS: It was difficult to self-study VATS, since I had no mentors and it was additional study. There was no one to evaluate my work, nor did I have the tools to make a self-assessment. Opportunities to practice on animal models were scarce, and the best I could do was to learn indirectly through attending conferences. Nowadays, young surgeons are exposed to various thoracoscopic devices and monitors from the start of their training, since the majority of surgeries are performed by VATS. They adapt quickly to the devices and feel no difficulty utilizing them. Most of them are accustomed to using computers or monitors from an early age, and the dry lab, simulator machines and animal model experiences have helped greatly as well. There are plenty of mentors or senior staff who they can follow.
PY: It has truly been a long way from your instant noodle box. But what major difficulties are your trainees facing currently?
JS: Recent changes in the medical environment presented new obstacles. Trainees have fewer opportunities to perform surgeries in face of the increasingly critical patients and society. The cost of surgery is increasing rapidly compared to open chest operations with the addition of medical products and devices such as staplers, ultrasound devices, 3D laparoscopic cameras and robot surgery devices. This is another barrier for doctors from money-strapped developing countries to perform and spread VATS. For open chest surgery, doctors could learn the latest surgical methods from leading doctors and perform what they had learned back in their country, but now [with advanced VATS], they might have acquired the knowledge and skill but not the resources to practice. More patients could benefit from the advances of technology when global devices or material makers price their products taking the national GNP into consideration.
PY: What do you think about beginning academic research during clinical training?
JS: Practicing medicine and research are not separated; rather, they are form a virtuous cycle. Research is solving the problems, difficulties or insufficiencies you have identified in your practice. Excellent research will bridge the gap from the bench to the bedside and from the bedside to the bench. I was fortunate enough to have a mentor in this regard. Professor Sung Sae Han showed me the importance of research when I was in my second year of residency. He worked tirelessly in the animal lab despite the poor conditions at that time, and that experience helped me realize the value of basic research as a thoracic and cardiovascular surgeon.
PY: What advice would you offer to your trainees in this aspect?
JS: Learning the basics to academic research during your clinical training is crucial to becoming an academic surgeon. I often refer this to as “putting on a suit”. Nobody will stare at you for wearing a shirt and trousers. If you add a nice jacket and tie, you will look like a well-dressed gentleman. But imagine wearing your shirt and jacket without the trousers. It would be quite an awkward sight to be standing in your underwear. The core strength of a clinician is within one’s ability to treat patients. I believe that surgeons who lack surgical skill yet pose as “academics” have forgotten to wear their trousers. As long as you can treat patients properly, you have the basics, even if your research ability is not as great. The harmonization of clinical and research capabilities will provide you with the perfect suit. Fellows who start their fellowship in my program are encouraged to participate in one of the many research projects in my laboratory, and are advised to conduct various studies. I hold an annual research camp where participants share and discuss their research outcomes. This involvement is the key to becoming a competent academic surgeon.
PY: How should trainees adapt to the continuously advancing techniques in VATS?
JS: Trainees assisting operations must have a strong sense of ownership. They must proactively think about what operation method or treatment plan they would choose, and compare it to the decisions made by their advising professors. If there were diverging decisions, they should ponder why and never hesitate to ask a mentor or senior if there are questions or difficulties. This of course does not imply that mentors or seniors are always right. Free and open discussion spurs mutual development, and hence is encouraged at all times.
In every issue of the ATEP Bulletin, we ask our interviewed Expert to share a useful tip, trick or secret in 100 words or fewer. For this first issue, Prof Jheon Sanghoon sets a great example as the leader of ATEP in giving not just one, but TWO great pieces of advice.
1. Pay attention to the smallest details !
Quality control is essential to surgery, and even more so for VATS. People who pick up the habit of performing hasty surgical procedures will never kick that habit. These surgeons neglect minor bleedings, insisting that they are unavoidable. Their operation fields will never be neat or tidy, and they will often ignore mild complications. Surgeons must exert extreme caution when conducting surgeries and must meticulously prepare for potential risks. Patients rarely die from intraoperative bleeding, and are mostly unaware that their blood pressure dropped and they received a blood transfusion. These situations can be prevented when surgeons exercise vigilance.
2. Patients are not your practicing tools !
Surgeons must be ultra-careful when preparing for new attempts or complex surgeries using VATS. Surgeons must conduct numerous operation simulations, and practice on animal models before entering into the actual surgery. A surgeon’s unwarranted ambition may cause unimaginable suffering to patients and their families, which also entails serious ethical implications. It is undeniable that new attempts are drivers of medical advancement, but it must come hand in hand with careful and thorough preparation. No surgeon should put one’s patient in harm’s way for his or her personal ambition.
The 6th ATEP Thoracoscopic Surgery Workshop
The ATEP Bulletin will report on the latest activities and events run by ATEP and it's members. Dr. Hye-seon Kim reports on the latest edition of ATEP’s core educational function : the ATEP Thoracoscopic Surgery Workshop.
The 6th Workshop of the Asian Thoracoscopic Surgery Educational Program (ATEP) was held at the Covidien Center of Innovation Korea (CCI Korea), located in Osong, Korea, on 30th and 31st of January, 2015.
The CCI Korea was opened on 2013 as the second CCI worldwide, and it has partnered with the Korean Society for Thoracic & Cardiovascular Surgery for offering professional training in cardiothoracic surgery. All healthcare professionals affiliated with the Society experience CCI Korea as part of their mandatory certification programs.
For this 6th ATEP Workshop, 20 trainees from 9 countries across Asia participated. The 21 senior faculty members came from ATEP, and they were there to share their valuable experiences and to provide advice during the animal lab session.
The workshop is comprised of 3 sessions as with previous workshops: morning lectures, live surgery, and afternoon animal wet-labs.
On the first day, the morning lectures dealt not only with the technique of VATS lobectomy, but also covered the current status of VATS surgery, comparison of thoracotomy versus VATS, and how to set-up a VATS program. Dr. Ali Zamir Khan from India gave a lecture on robotics thoracic surgery.
The second session of the first day was the live surgery session. A demonstration of VATS lobectomy surgery was performed by Dr. Hyeong Ryul Kim from Asan Medical Center, and this was transmitted in real time from Seoul to the lecture hall of the CCI Korea.
In the afternoon was the animal wet-lab session. After the brief introduction, participants were divided in 10 small groups of 2-3 trainees, and all had the chance to perform VATS operation by themselves under the close tutelage of an ATEP faculty member. These ATEP instructors were all experts in VATS, and they mentored the operations of trainees. On the first day, trainees experienced right side lobectomy with the canine model. The surgery performed could be tailored to the needs of the trainees, so that everyone could learn something appropriate to their level from the ATEP faculty. For example, some trainees who had prior experience on VATS performed much more tricky operations, such as bronchial resection and anastomosis.
Finishing first day’s schedule, a Gala Dinner as a social event was held to promote friendship among participants. It was great chance for trainees to ask questions and share tips personally with the world renowned experts from various Asian countries in ATEP.
VATS, Dr. Calvin Ng from Hong Kong gave a nice introduction about this emerging technique. In addition, Dr. Tadasu Kohno from Japan delivered a lecture about the management of complication of VATS which was a very useful guide to the participants. In the afternoon, like on the first day, an animal wet-lab was held and this time the trainees performed left side VATS operations under ATEP mentorship.
The trainee participants said the workshop was great chance to hear excellent lectures that were full of information and tips on VATS operation from the experts. Special praise was reserved for the animal wet-lab sessions, which were considered very useful opportunities to directly experience the real operation, using the excellent canine model. Dr. Lee, a trainee participant from Korea, said: “I’m in training in a hospital with less experience in VATS. Because of the workshop,
I had a precious chance to perform thoracoscopic surgery and it gave me not only the experience to enhance my surgical skill but also more confidence towards performing VATS operations in future.” The ATEP workshop is the most well organized education program on VATS in Asia and it provides useful surgical skill education program to surgeons in training and at the beginning of their career. It is held 1-2 times per year at rotating locations across Asia. For more information, you can visit the www.myatep.org website to find information about ATEP program and more education materials on VATS.
ATEP Calendar
In every issue, the ATEP Bulletin will introduce upcoming meetings and events that will be of interest to ATEP members.
May 31 – June 3
European Society of Thoracic Surgeons (ESTS) 22nd European Conference on General Thoracic Surgery, Lisbon, Portugal
The ESTS Annual Meeting is today the largest and most international conference on General Thoracic Surgery in the world. The leading thoracic surgeons from around the world will share their experiences and latest research. One of the greatest highlights of this meeting is the PostGraduate Course held on May 31, which is a friendly but fiercely contested Q&A competition between teams from Europe, Asia and the Americas - in which education and updates are promoted through close interaction with the audience. This year, there is special ATEP interest in that the PGC is co-organized by ATEP’s Alan Sihoe, and the Asia team includes ATEP Board Members Jheon Sanghoon (captain), Vincent Fang, Lee Jangming, and Ali Zamir Khan. In addition, many ATEP members will be presenting their abstracts and there is a special collaborative session between the ESTS and the Chinese Association of Thoracic Surgeons.
July 10 – July 11
2nd International Conference of the Asia Thoracoscopic Surgery Education Program (ATEP), Seoul, Korea
Following the success of the inaugural ATEP academic meeting in Beijing in 2014, ATEP will hold its 2nd International Conference in Seoul. The meeting brings together the leading surgeons in Asia in minimally invasive thoracic surgery to share their insights. In addition, there will be a special session to honor the legacy and achievements of the late Prof Naruke, a towering figure in thoracic surgery in Asia. New to this 2nd meeting will be an invitation to all ATEP members to submit videos of their interesting operations to share with peers – with a prize to be won by the best one!
Sept 2 – Sept 5
2015 Annual Meeting of the Endoscopic and Laparoscopic Surgeons of Asia (ELSA), Seoul, Korea
ATEP has built a very close working relationship with ELSA over the last couple of years. With a shared interest in developing minimally invasive surgery in Asia, the two bodies have common aims and interests. At the ELSA, ATEP has now secured a regular and important track specifically for the presentation of advances in thoracic surgery. This is a great meeting for ATEP members to share with and learn from our colleagues in other branches of minimally invasive surgery from around Asia.
Sept 6 – Sept 9
International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC), 16th World Conference on Lung Cancer, Denver, Colorado, USA
ATEP by definition is concerned with the management of lung cancer – specifically through the use of minimally invasive thoracic surgical approaches. This is the basis for an exciting new partnership with IASLC (see “ATEP News” section). There is no better forum for experiencing the latest in lung cancer management worldwide than at the IASLC Annual Meeting.
ATEP members can take advantage of the reduced membership fees to join IASLC and attend as an IASLC member.
Oct 9 – Oct 10
7th ATEP Thoracoscopic Surgery Workshop, Mumbai, India
The Thoracoscopic Workshop is the core of ATEP’s mission to teach and promote the highest standards of minimally invasive thoracic surgery in Asia. Senior ATEP members will proctor and guide participants in basic and advanced skills in thoracoscopic surgery through didactic lectures, live surgery, and animal wetlabs. For the first time, the workshop will be held in India – a country of vast potential currently at the threshold of a boom in minimally invasive thoracic surgery.
ATEP could not have come at a more appropriate time.
ATEP News
In every issue, the ATEP Bulletin will bring readers news of interesting developments within ATEP and the latest activities of it's members.
ATEP and IASLC - a Marriage Made in Heaven?
Almost by definition, all ATEP members are lung cancer specialists – using minimally invasive surgical approaches to treat the deadliest of neoplastic disease. In the world of lung cancer, there is no more authoritative body overseeing the highest clinical and research standards in the management of this disease. In a very exciting development, ATEP and IASLC have now begun a new collaboration bringing together the unique expertise of both bodies.
Both bodies will be collaborating in future meetings. ATEP will receive endorsement from IASLC for its future ATEP International Conferences. This is a sign of IASLC’s recognition of the clinical and academic value of ATEP’s meetings in the common battle against lung cancer. ATEP similarly actively encourages its members to enthusiastically support IASLC events and meetings. The experience gained will undoubtedly be constructive in the advancement of minimally invasive thoracic surgery in Asia.
IASLC regularly holds Webinars. These involve multi-disciplinary programs discussing topics of great interest in thoracic malignancy management, and are invariably of the highest educational quality. They are also important CME events. ATEP has undertaken to lead an upcoming IASLC Webinar, and will seek to share its unique Asian perspective on how minimally invasive thoracic surgery will affect lung cancer management algorithms within a multi-disciplinary environment. ATEP members are strongly encouraged to stay tuned and participate in this exciting new event!
IASLC has also offered special membership rates for Asian clinicians who are from developing countries or who are already members of other groups, including the Japan Lung Cancer Society, the Korean Association for the Study of Lung Cancer, and the Indian Society for Study of Lung Cancer. Details can be found at: https://www.iaslc.org/membership/become-member.
This coming together of the top minimally invasive surgeons in Asia with the leading authority in lung cancer medicine appears to be nothing short of a perfect match – one perhaps made in heaven for the benefit of patients,
New Blood: New ATEP Board Members
Minimally invasive thoracic surgery is a very dynamic field in which new strategies and new innovations are constantly appearing to potentially benefit patients. Reflecting this, ATEP is also continuously looking to refresh its leadership with new faces bringing new ideas. At the 6th ATEP Workshop, the ATEP Board elected two new members to its ranks.
Alan Sihoe is Clinical Associate Professor of the Department of Surgery of the University of Hong Kong, and the Chief of Thoracic Surgery at the new University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital. He has practiced VATS for over 15 years, and is one of the pioneers in ‘Next Generation’ VATS techniques in Asia – including needlescopic and uniportal VATS. He is currently in much demand throughout Asia and Europe for his expertise in uniportal VATS – lecturing, performing live surgery, and helping establish VATS programs in many centers. He is the Associate Editor in Thoracic for the Interactive Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery journal, and a member of the Editorial Boards for many leading international Thoracic and Respirology journals. In addition to being elected to the ATEP Board, Dr Sihoe has been appointed the Editor-in-Chiefof the ATEP Bulletin, and Chair of the new ATEP External Relations Committee.
Sai Yendamuri was trained in the USA, and famously worked with Prof Todd Demmy in Buffalo, New York, and at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute. He is now Chief of Thoracic Surgery at the Yashoda Group of Hospitals in Hyderabad, India. Being a highly experiences VATS surgeon, Dr Yendamuri is uniquely poised to carry the ATEP mission into India, where interest in minimally invasive thoracic surgery is now starting to really take off. He has already successfully organized important thoracic surgery conferences in Hyderabad.
More than just another new journal!
Nowadays, it sometimes seems that a new medical journal is launched every week. Many clinicians can be forgiven for feeling disinterested when yet another one appears. However, the Journal of Visualized Surgery (JOVS) promises to be something different.
Unlike journals focused on publishing research data, JOVS is aimed primarily at the exposition of surgical techniques. Specifically, JOVS covers the modern field of Visualized Surgery – which includes all procedures in which video technology enhances surgery, such as VATS, laparoscopy, endoscopy and many other approaches. Submissions describing basic, advanced and even experimental/innovative visualized surgical techniques are invited. In line with the theme of visualized surgery, videos are a must. JOVS also emphasizes that the articles should include not only a how-to-do-it description of the operation, but ideally also a multi-disciplinary overview of the peri-operative management: how each member of the team – surgeon, anesthetist, nurses, allied health professionals, and so on – all play a role in the technique.
Surgeons are always fond of writing papers on surgical technique, sharing their own expertise on a particular operation with their peers. Sadly, nowadays the traditional surgical journals are very reluctant to accept such surgical technique papers because it is now realized that such papers generate very few citations. Surgeons are therefore usually left frustrated when trying to publish such surgical technique papers. JOVS aims specifically to publish such articles and hence may prove an idea vehicle for the thoracic surgeon to share his/her technique with the world.
JOVS is currently in contact with ATEP, and may be established as the official journal of ATEP in the near future. Because the aims of ATEP and JOVs are shared – the promotion of the best minimally invasive surgery techniques – this arrangement seems to be an ideal one. ATEP members are strongly encouraged to share their techniques through the exciting new platform of JOVS. Further details about JOVS can be found at: http://www.amepc.org/jovs.