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:

• Pain. Pain is a common side effect of most operations. Some cause more pain than others. Your health care team will tell you how to keep your pain low. They will also provide medicines to lower the pain.
• Infection. Your health care team will show you how to care for your wound after surgery. Follow these instructions to avoid infection. Infections can make the recovery time longer. If you do get an infection, your provider might give you medicine to fight the infection.

• Loss of organ function. To remove your cancer, the provider may need to remove an entire organ. For example, a kidney may need to be removed if you have kidney cancer.

  For some such operations, the remaining organ can work well enough that you'll feel like you did before surgery. In other situations, you could have some problems after surgery. For instance, removal of a lung may make it harder to breathe.

• Fatigue. After surgery, you may not have much energy. You might have trouble concentrating. This is typical and it will get better.
• Bleeding. All operations have a risk of bleeding. Tell your provider what medicines you are taking. Some medicines may increase the risk of bleeding.

• Blood clots. Recovery from surgery gives you a higher risk of developing a blood clot. Though the risk is small, this can be serious.

  Your health care team will take steps to reduce your risk of blood clots. They will get you up and out of bed as soon as possible after your operation. They may also recommend a blood-thinning medicine to reduce the risk of a clot.

• Altered bowel and bladder function. Right after surgery, you may have trouble with bowel movements or urination. This typically gets better after a few days, depending on your operation.