About surgery
Find out when you might have surgery for cancer, including to diagnose it, treat it, or reduce your risk of getting cancer.
Surgery means removing tissue from the body. It's one of the main treatments for many types of cancer.
You might have surgery as an inpatient or an outpatient (day
surgery). It usually means having a local anaesthetic to numb the area
first, or a general anaesthetic so you are asleep during the operation.
Whether surgery is an option depends on:
- the type of cancer you have
- the size of the cancer and whether it has spread (the stage)
- where the cancer is in your body
- your general health
If your cancer has spread, surgery might not be the best treatment
for you. It may be better to have a treatment that reaches all parts of
your body, such as chemotherapy, biological therapy or hormone therapy.
You may also have radiotherapy to shrink the tumour and help control
symptoms.
Surgery is not used for some types of cancer of the blood system
(leukaemia). It is also not used for some types of cancer of the
lymphatic system (lymphoma), if the cancer cells are spread throughout
the body. If the cancer is in many areas, surgery won’t get rid of it
all.
Sometimes surgery is not possible because of the position of the
tumour. For example, if the tumour is near a blood vessel or other
delicate tissue. Your doctor might use other treatments instead.
Surgery and cancer
There are different ways that surgery can be used for cancer:
To diagnose cancer, a surgeon may remove a small piece of tissue from
the abnormal area. This is called a biopsy. If the biopsy contains
cancer cells, it can show what type of cancer it is and how slowly or
quickly it may grow (the grade).
Surgery is one of the main treatments for cancer. It might be the only treatment you need.
Surgery is a local treatment – it only treats the part of the body operated on. So it may cure cancer that is completely contained in one area and hasn't spread. Usually, the earlier a cancer is found the easier it is to remove it.
Your surgeon removes the tumour and some normal tissue from around it (known as a clear margin). They might also remove the lymph nodes nearest to the cancer, in case they contain cancer cells. Lymph nodes are part of the lymphatic system. This is a network of tubes and glands that filter lymphatic fluid, and fight infection and other illnesses.
Your surgeon sends the tissue to the laboratory, where it is looked at under a microscope. This gives more information about the cancer. Doctors then decide whether you need any further treatment to reduce the risk of the cancer coming back. This is called adjuvant treatment and is most often chemotherapy or radiotherapy.
Some people have treatment before surgery to help shrink a cancer and make it easier to remove. This is called neo adjuvant treatment.
During an operation, surgeons sometimes find that a cancer has spread further than they expected. When this happens, the operation might take longer than planned, or may have to be stopped altogether.
If cancer has spread to another part of the body, surgery can't usually cure it. But with some types of cancer, surgery can help people to live for a long time and may sometimes lead to a cure. When a cancer has spread, it might be better to have a treatment that works throughout your body, such as chemotherapy.
Surgery is a local treatment – it only treats the part of the body operated on. So it may cure cancer that is completely contained in one area and hasn't spread. Usually, the earlier a cancer is found the easier it is to remove it.
Your surgeon removes the tumour and some normal tissue from around it (known as a clear margin). They might also remove the lymph nodes nearest to the cancer, in case they contain cancer cells. Lymph nodes are part of the lymphatic system. This is a network of tubes and glands that filter lymphatic fluid, and fight infection and other illnesses.
Your surgeon sends the tissue to the laboratory, where it is looked at under a microscope. This gives more information about the cancer. Doctors then decide whether you need any further treatment to reduce the risk of the cancer coming back. This is called adjuvant treatment and is most often chemotherapy or radiotherapy.
Some people have treatment before surgery to help shrink a cancer and make it easier to remove. This is called neo adjuvant treatment.
During an operation, surgeons sometimes find that a cancer has spread further than they expected. When this happens, the operation might take longer than planned, or may have to be stopped altogether.
If cancer has spread to another part of the body, surgery can't usually cure it. But with some types of cancer, surgery can help people to live for a long time and may sometimes lead to a cure. When a cancer has spread, it might be better to have a treatment that works throughout your body, such as chemotherapy.
Source Link: http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/cancer-in-general/treatment/surgery/about#collapse-80600
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