Sunday, July 12, 2009

Does this mean there is nothing to worry about with the colon cancer surgery

Does this mean there is nothing to worry about with the colon cancer surgery?
My dad is 71 years old with a leaky heart valve. His cardiologist gave him clearance for the surgery. Does this mean there is nothing to worry about with the colon cancer surgery and that everything will go good
Cancer - 3 Answers
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1 :
There is always some risk with surgery, and by being over 70 and having heart problems, your father has 2 main risks. But his cardiologist has determined that the benefits of the surgery outweigh the risks of heart problems. Most likely the surgeon will take extra precautions because of the additional risk, such as using laproscopic or hand-assisted laproscopic surgery, which are slightly less invasive.
2 :
There is never "nothing" to worry about with any surgical procedure, but the fact the cardiologist gave the go-ahead indicates your Dad will do fine since he must be healthy enough. In the scheme of things, resection of part (or all) of the colon is a straightforward procedure, and between 1,800 and 2,000 of this type of surgery are performed in the US every day! He'll be fine. But he will have to learn to eat better! Best wishes to your Dad, and have a Happy Thanksgiving!
3 :
The use of anesthesia can cause cardiac arrhythmias as a side effect of the drug itself. If someone already suffers from atrial fribilation or a ventricular arrhythmias then they would be very concerned about surgery. There are many who suffer from leaky valves. That all by itself would probably not prevent surgery unless the leak was moderate to severe or in combination with other heart issues such as congestive heart failure. His cardiologist has determined that his heart condition would not add excessive risk to the procedure and has approved it. The real worry here is getting the ALL tumor out and checking the surrounding lymph nodes for spread. He should have already had a CAT scan to determine if they see things elsewhere. You don't list here in your post any of these results so hard to comment on this. Even if it is late stage colon cancer, a person still gets relief by surgery to remove an obstructed bowel. I will just let you know, my father had colon cancer diagnosed 7 years ago, had the surgery, was positive in 11 out of 21 lymph nodes for spread, had the lymph nodes removed at the same time, and followed 9 months of chemotherapy. He is still alive and doing well with no repercussions from the ordeal. He is now almost 82. Make sure you and your siblings get your colonoscopy every 5 years. Family history is an important predictor of issues for your generation. Getting diagnosed early and prevention by polyp removal makes this very survivable. Hope that helps

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