Surgery

Surgery is also called an operation or a procedure. It’s a common way to treat cancer. Not all cancers can be removed or made smaller with surgery.

Surgery can sound scary, but it’s very safe. Doctors and nurses will be looking after you and trying to get you okay as soon as possible.

If you don’t understand something about the surgery, ask your doctor to explain it in a different way. You can take family or someone you trust to your appointments.

Your body cannot “fix” cancer by itself, so doctors may use surgery to:

• remove the cancer from the body
• make the cancer smaller
• stop pain caused by the cancer
• deal with the symptoms caused by the cancer (e.g. fixing a blocked bowel).

Sometimes, the doctor may use surgery to find out more about the cancer. Surgery may be used together with other cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy (“chemo”), radiation therapy (radiotherapy) or hormone therapy.

There are different types of surgery for cancer. You might have:

• Open surgery – One or more cuts are made in the body to remove the cancer.
• Keyhole surgery – A few small cuts are made in the body. The doctor uses a tiny camera to help see inside the body to remove the cancer.

The type of surgery you have will depend on the size of the cancer, where it is in your body, and if it has spread in your body.

Before the surgery, you may need to see some doctors and nurses (pre-admission clinic). You may have some tests like blood tests, x-rays, or breathing tests. These tests may be done before you go into hospital, or on the same day as your surgery.

You’ll be asked to sign a consent form before having surgery. This is called informed consent. It means you understand any risks there might be during and after surgery.

Surgery will be at a hospital. This may not be your local hospital because you may need a special team with the right skills to look after you.

Your doctor will tell you how long the surgery might take. Sometimes this can change during surgery. This will depend on your type of cancer and if the cancer has spread to more than one part in your body. Before the surgery, the doctor will give you medicine that stops pain and helps you to go to sleep.

When you wake up

You may feel:

• a bit sleepy
• some pain and a bit sick. You will be given medicine to help you feel better.

You may have:

• a drip in your arm (to help give medicine and fluids)
• a tube to drain fluid away from the site
• a tube to help you wee (a catheter).

Before you go home

You may learn:

• how to do some special breathing or other exercises. The doctors or nurses will talk to you about this.

You may need to stay in hospital for a few days or until you feel okay. When you leave the hospital, community nurses may visit you to make sure you’re getting better. You may have a check-up at the hospital in 1 or 2 weeks.