Cancer surgery: Physically removing cancer Show
The prospect of cancer surgery may make you feel anxious. Help put your mind at ease by learning more about cancer surgery and how and why it's used. By Mayo Clinic StaffCancer surgery is a common part of diagnosing and treating cancer. Here's a look at how surgery is used to care for people with cancer. How is cancer surgery used?Common reasons you might have cancer surgery include:
Surgery is often used with other cancer treatments. These treatments can include chemotherapy, radiation therapy and other treatments. Which treatments are best for you depends on the type of cancer you have, its stage and your overall health. How is cancer surgery typically performed?When it's possible, the goal of cancer surgery is to remove all of the cancer from the body. To do this, the surgeon uses cutting tools to remove the cancer and some healthy tissue around it. The surgeon may also remove some lymph nodes in the area. The lymph nodes are tested to see if they contain cancer cells. If cancer spreads to the lymph nodes, there's a chance that the cancer could spread to other parts of the body. What other techniques are used in cancer surgery?Many other types of operations can be used to treat cancer. Researchers continue to look at new methods. Some other types of cancer surgery include:
Cancer surgery continues to change. Researchers are looking at other types of less invasive surgery. What can you expect before and after cancer surgery?How you get ready for and heal from cancer surgery depends on the operation. In general, you can expect certain things to be the same, including:
What are the risks of cancer surgery?The risks of surgery will depend on the type of operation you're having. In general, most cancer operations have a risk of:
Sign up for free, and stay up to date on research advancements, health tips and current health topics, like COVID-19, plus expertise on managing health. To provide you with the most relevant and helpful information, and
understand which information is beneficial, we may combine your email and website usage information with other information we have about you. If you are a Mayo Clinic patient, this could include protected health information. If we combine this information with your protected health information, we will treat all of that information as protected health information and will only use or disclose that information as set forth in our notice of privacy practices. You may opt-out of email
communications at any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link in the e-mail. Aug. 25, 2022
See more In-depth See also
. What is the best way to treat cancer that has metastasized?Typically, metastatic cancer requires systemic therapy, or medications given by mouth or injected into the bloodstream to reach cancer cells throughout the body, such as chemotherapy or hormone therapy. Other treatments may include immunotherapy, radiation therapy, surgery, or a combination of these.
How long can you live with metastasized cancer?A patient with widespread metastasis or with metastasis to the lymph nodes has a life expectancy of less than six weeks. A patient with metastasis to the brain has a more variable life expectancy (one to 16 months) depending on the number and location of lesions and the specifics of treatment.
Can you survive cancer that has metastasized?Some people can live for years with metastatic cancer that is well controlled. Other treatments may improve the quality of life by relieving symptoms. This type of care is called palliative care. It can be given at any point during treatment for cancer.
Can Stage 4 cancer be cured with surgery?Surgery typically is not used to treat stage 4 cancer. However, if the sites of spread are small and there aren't very many of them, they can be removed along with the primary tumor. In these instances, surgery may relieve symptoms and help prevent the cancer from spreading even more.
|