Women's Guild Pulmonary Disease Institute

The Women’s Guild Pulmonary Disease Institute brings together a multidisciplinary team of physicians, surgeons and researchers who specialize in diseases of the lungs, esophagus, chest wall, airways and mediastinum. The institute is comprised of the Division of Pulmonology and the Cedars-Sinai Center for Chest Diseases, which specializes in minimally invasive thoracic surgery.

The Division of Pulmonology conducts basic and clinical research in pulmonary medicine. One such study seeks to better understand the mechanisms responsible for muscle wasting and dysfunction in patients with chronic lung diseases.

Cedars-Sinai conducts numerous clinical trials in a continuing search for new and better diagnostic tests and treatments for lung diseases. Researchers at the Center for Chest Diseases test new devices and surgical techniques for patients with severe emphysema. Studies are also underway to look for new, more accurate ways to diagnose non-small cell lung cancer, as well as ways to improve minimally invasive methods to surgically treat conditions affecting the lungs.

Among its research accomplishments, Cedars-Sinai was one of the principal centers for the National Institutes of Health’s National Emphysema Treatment Trial (NETT), a study which investigated the benefits of lung volume reduction surgery for patients with end-stage emphysema.

Clinical Care

Cedars-Sinai excels in the surgical treatment of lung disease. Cedars-Sinai pioneered the use of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for lung cancer; its surgeons may have the world’s most extensive experience with this minimally invasive procedure. Cedars-Sinai also offers minimally invasive surgery for emphysema known as lung volume reduction surgery.

Expert lung transplantation services are provided in partnership with the Comprehensive Transplant Center, which has survival rates above national averages.

Education

Cedars-Sinai offers a thoracic surgery residency program that allows the resident physician to gain both medical and surgical expertise in the treatment of heart, lung and esophageal diseases. Residents acquire skills required for accurate and appropriate preoperative evaluation, treatment and postoperative management. They are offered the opportunity to attain expertise in performing a broad range of cardiothoracic surgical procedures, as well as to learn the research methods and clinical tools necessary to succeed in an academic environment.

The Division of Pulmonary offers a three-year combined pulmonary and critical care fellowship program that qualifies graduates for pulmonary and critical care board examinations. Fellows are exposed to a highly diverse patient population, and have opportunities to participate in a wide variety of clinical and research experiences.

Leadership

Zab Mosenifar, MD

Medical Director, Cedars-Sinai Center for Chest Diseases

Robert J. McKenna, Jr., MD
Surgical Director, Cedars-Sinai Center for Chest Diseases
Medical Director, Thoracic Surgery and Trauma