It's just that according to the literature available to me
Thoracotomy is used to treat "unresolved" pneumonia where the symptoms do not respond to treatment after a couple of weeks, or in cases where the pneumonia coincides with an abcess or empyema - either of which could have developed after the initial diagnosis of pneumonia and would require surgery to treat. Given that the OP already posted "I do know he had a lung out around that time after constantly coming down with pneumonia - could have been a secondary infection" it seems perfectly reasonable that his dad was admitted with pneumonia and had a lobectomy due to subsequent complications. The following timeline:
1) Goes out on piss, tries to fuck postbox
2) Comes down with pneumonia, admitted to hospital
3) Pneumonia doesn't react to treatment, empyema discovered
4) Thoracotomy/lobectomy to treat empyema
...it's not beyond the realms of possibility, is it?
( emvee cruor deo cruoris, Wed 2 Mar 2011, 16:14, 1 reply)

I could be wrong
but that is a different kettle of fish, than it being the pnuemonia given by a cold night out on the piss that actually caused it. It just seems unlikely the pnuemonia had anything to do with it, regardless of how many cases he had. Also an abscess is not exactly the 'secondary condition' in this scenario.

Out of interest your 'biomedical library' is definitely jstor isn't it?
( Amberl was stripey and dominated Europe, Wed 2 Mar 2011, 18:34, closed)

It's a completely plausible way this could have happened and far from "medically impossible"
...though I appreciate that since the Badger thought of a new section for his archive, he needs to fill it somehow.

An abcess or empyema, either pre-existing or developed after the initial hospitalisation for pneumonia would account for everything given here - the OP themself admitted that they didn't know all the details of the case - but LOL their lung fell out ROLF

No, it's not jstor.
( emvee cruor deo cruoris, Wed 2 Mar 2011, 22:50, closed)