Surgery for Cancer

Surgery is often a first-line treatment intended to cure or improve symptoms of the disease by removing all or part of the cancer. Oftentimes, surgery is the best chance to cure cancer, especially early stage cancers that have not spread to other tissues.

Why surgery for cancer is performed

The ideal goal of cancer surgery is to remove all cancer cells from your body. Your doctor may recommend surgery even if only part of the cancer can be removed in order to improve the success of other treatments, such as radiation therapy, in attacking cancer cells. The rate of success for surgery depends on the type of cancer you have along with your age, overall health and other factors.

Other reasons for cancer surgery:

• Prevention: Some people choose to remove an organ or body tissues without a cancer diagnosis if they are at high risk for developing cancer in the future. Another name for this is prophylactic cancer treatment or surgery. For instance, a woman at high risk for breast cancer may decide to undergo a prophylactic double mastectomy to significantly reduce her risk of breast cancer.
• Diagnosis: In some cases, a doctor confirms a tumor as malignant or benign after surgically removing it. 
• Staging: Surgery can reveal the stage of your cancer. For example, a doctor can determine the size of a tumor, the presence of blood vessel or whether the cancer has spread to lymph nodes or other parts of your body.
• Palliative care: Your doctor may recommend surgery to reduce symptoms of advanced cancer, such as pain from a tumor pressing on a nerve.

What to expect

Where you have surgery and who performs it depends on the type and stage of cancer. In general, a surgeon who specializes in specific types of cancer performs the surgery. For instance, a colon and rectal surgeon performs colon cancer surgery and a gynecologic cancer surgeon performs uterine cancer surgery.  

Most cancer surgeries take place in a hospital or surgical center with general anesthesia. The type and size of the cancer determines how invasive the procedure will be. Minimally invasive surgery may be an option for a small tumor or growth of cancer cells. Large or multiple tumors or surgery that involves removing a large amount of tissue will require a more traditional open procedure with a larger incision. Regardless of the surgical approach, your surgeon, oncologist and nurses will help you through the entire process. 

While surgery for cancer offers the best chance for a cure in most cases, it’s important to discuss the benefits and risks of surgery with your surgeon. Surgical risks include infection, excessive bleeding, damage to neighboring healthy tissues, and reaction to anesthesia. 

Recovery after surgery for cancer

Your recovery after cancer surgery depends on how invasive the surgery is and whether or not you need other cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy and radiation. Your surgery may be an outpatient procedure and you recover at home, or you may need several days in the hospital or surgical center to safely recover before returning home.

Pain control is an important part of healing and recovery. Tell your surgeon or someone on your care team if your pain medicine is not working well or if the pain changes. 

Your surgeon and oncologist will give you specific instructions for follow-up appointments to determine the success of surgery and long-term screening for cancer recurrence.