Thoracic Surgery has witnessed a notable decrease in applicants over the past decade. In this context Kron and colleagues reported that the "United States will face a severe shortage of cardiothoracic surgeons within 10 years if entry into the profession keeps declining." Although recent innovations, such as drug-eluting stents and percutaneous valves, are extraordinary, they do not make the unique skills and training of the cardiac and thoracic surgeon obsolete. Although we are rumored to be facing extinction and applicant interest is low, the potential to enhance thoracic surgery residency interest remains paramount to our discipline's future. We must respond to the current crisis by being even more focused and committed to recruit the best and the brightest into the field of cardiothoracic surgery.
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