Bronchopulmonary segments are of increasing interest to clinicians because surgical procedures are emerging that maintain as much pulmonary function as possible. The conventional textbook borders between these segments, their many anatomical variations, and their numerous lymphatic or blood vessels, make them challenging for surgeons, especially thoracic surgeons. Fortunately, because imaging techniques such as three-dimensional-computed tomography are developing further, we can see the anatomical structure of the lungs in detail. Moreover, segmentectomy is now seen as an alternative to a more radical lobectomy, especially for lung cancer. This review explores the connection between the anatomical structure of the lungs, especially their segments, and surgical procedures. Further research on minimally invasive surgical procedures is timely as we can diagnose lung cancer and other diseases ever earlier. In this article, we will look at the latest trends in thoracic surgery. Importantly, we propose a classification of lung segments in reference to surgery difficulties due to their anatomy.
Keywords: anatomy; bronchopulmonary segment; cancer; diagnosis; lungs; segmentectomy; systematic review; thoracic surgery.