Impact of the expanded indication of robot-assisted thoracic surgery for mediastinal tumors

Following the introduction of robot-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (RATS) as a health insurance-covered treatment in Japan, we investigated the current status and impact of the expansion of the indications for RATS for mediastinal tumors. Between 2018 and 2022, 209 cases of total mediastinal tumor resection were performed in our hospital. The study period was divided into the first half (January 2018 to June 2020) and the second half (July 2020 to December 2022), and perioperative parameters were compared between the two groups. Ninety-six surgical procedures were performed in the first half and 113 in the second half. The percentage of RATS approach was significantly higher in the second half compared with the first half (P