The purpose of this study was to assess the quality of care provided to patients who underwent thoracotomy for histologically proven primary lung cancer. The study was based on retrospective analysis of hospital data from 234 patients hospitalized in the two Thoracic Surgery Departments of the «SOTIRIA» Hospital in Athens. The approach was focused on the technical aspect of care while the assessment was based on process and outcome indicators, i.e. length of stay, 30-day postoperative morbidity, re-admissions, re-operations, operability, resectability, ratio of pneumonectomies/total number of resections and blood transfusion rate. Hospital stay was found to be very long. Seventy-six per cent of the patients were hospitalised, postsurgically in the ICU, with a mean length of stay 3 days. The rate of pneumonectomies/total number of resections was found to be 19.65%. The operability rate was 21.66% and the resectability rate 88.46%. The rate of 30-day post-operative morbidity was 7.69%. Re-operation and re-admission rates were satisfactory but their causes should be analyzed. Fifty-one per cent of the patients were transfused perioperatively , with a mean blood quantity of 3 units. We noticed statistical differences between the two departments concerning mean length of stay, transfusion frequency and rate of pneumonectomies/total number of resections. Pneumon 2001, 14 (1): 61-69