The surgical removal of a lobe of an organ, most commonly referring to removal of a lung lobe to treat lung cancer, infection, or other diseases. The brain, liver, and thyroid can also undergo lobectomy procedures.
From Greek 'lobos' (lobe or rounded projection) and 'ektome' (excision or cutting out). The term applies to various organs, with pulmonary lobectomy being the most common, developed as lung surgery advanced in the early-to-mid 20th century.
Your lungs are remarkably compartmentalized - each lung has distinct lobes (3 on the right, 2 on the left) that function somewhat independently, so removing one lobe still leaves you with substantial breathing capacity! Lobectomy demonstrates the incredible engineering of human anatomy, where organs are designed with built-in redundancy for survival.
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