Sorry I did not respond sooner. I finally found a Dr Bingaman at Cleveland Clinic who wanted to try an approach from the back without flattening a lung. They were not sure if they could make it. I was out of surgery in about 2.5 hrs and they were successful at removing the back side of the disk. They took some small bone they cut on the way in an put it in the space between the vertabras for support. I hope this helps. I would highly recommend Dr Bingaman.