Special Interview with Dr. Marco Scarci, Guest Editor of Mini-invasive Surgery
On September 15, 2025, the Editorial Office of Mini-invasive Surgery (MIS, ISSN: 2574-1225) had the honor of interviewing Dr. Marco Scarci, a world-renowned thoracic surgeon celebrated for his expertise in keyhole surgery for lung cancer and pneumothorax, and Guest Editor of MIS.
Below are the details of the interview:
Q1. In the treatment of early-stage lung cancer, how would you compare VATS and robotic-assisted surgery in terms of surgical outcomes and patient recovery?
Q2. You have contributed to numerous studies and guidelines on evidence-based practice and process improvement in thoracic surgery. Given current challenges with healthcare resources and cost pressures, how can we balance the clinical benefits of minimally invasive techniques with cost-effectiveness?
Q3. AI is increasingly being applied in thoracic surgery, from imaging assistance to intraoperative navigation. Where do you see the greatest potential for AI to improve outcomes in VATS and robotic surgery in the coming years?
Q4. As Guest Editor of the MIS Special Issue, “Comparative Outcomes of VATS vs. Robotic Surgery for Early-Stage Lung Cancer,” what key messages would you most like to convey to both the academic community and clinical practice?
Q5. You have published extensively in this field. What advice would you offer to young scholars on selecting research topics, designing studies, and preparing manuscripts to produce more impactful work?
Profile
Dr. Marco Scarci
University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom
Dr. Marco Scarci is a renowned consultant thoracic surgeon in the UK, specializing in complex chest and pulmonary conditions with particular expertise in Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery (VATS) and robotic-assisted thoracic surgery. His clinical practice spans a broad spectrum of thoracic diseases, including lung cancer, chest wall tumors and deformities, pneumothorax, emphysema, and mediastinal tumors, with pioneering contributions to single-incision and other minimally invasive keyhole procedures.
Dr. Scarci trained in Cambridge, London, and internationally in Italy, Malta, and Canada. His career includes positions at Guy’s & St Thomas’ NHS Trust in London and advanced fellowships in minimally invasive thoracic surgery at the University of Toronto. In 2011, he was appointed Consultant Thoracic Surgeon at Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. He currently practices across several leading London hospitals, ensuring access to high-quality thoracic care for a broad patient population.
Alongside his clinical practice, Dr. Scarci is a highly active academic with over 170 peer-reviewed publications. He serves as Associate Specialty Chief Editor for Frontiers in Surgery and as Associate Editor for both Journal of Thoracic Disease and The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. He has authored and edited four textbooks on thoracic surgery, chaired European Society of Thoracic Surgeons working groups on chest wall and pleural malignancy, and contributed to multiple NICE clinical guidelines.
As an educator, Dr. Scarci is Honorary Clinical Senior Lecturer at Imperial College London and Senior Clinical Tutor at the University of Cambridge, where he is dedicated to training the next generation of thoracic surgeons. His outstanding clinical and academic contributions have been recognized with multiple honors, including the NHS Clinical Excellence Award.
Editor: Ivy Wang
Language Editor: Catherine Yang
Production Editor: Ting Xu
Respectfully Submitted by the Editorial Office of Mini-invasive Surgery
