Surgery to treat cancer

Surgery to treat cancer
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The type of surgery used to treat cancer depends on the location and stage of cancer and your general health. The table below lists some of the more common types of cancer surgery.

Surgery

Cancer type

ColectomyBowel
CraniotomyBrain
CystectomyBladder
GastrostomyStomach
HepatectomyLiver
HysterectomyCervical, ovarian, uterine
LaryngectomyLaryngeal (voice box)
LobectomyLung
MastectomyBreast
NephrectomyKidney
OesophagectomyOesophageal
OrchidectomyTesticular
Pancreaticoduodenectomy (Whipple’s procedure)Pancreatic
PneumonectomyLung
ProstatectomyProstate
ThyroidectomyThyroid
VulvectomyVulva

 

Several types of surgery are helpful to people with cancer. Some surgeries are used in combination with other types of treatment. Types of surgeries include:

1. Curative Surgery

Curative surgery removes the cancerous tumour or growth from the body. Surgeons use curative surgery when the cancerous tumour is localized to a specific area of the body. This type of treatment is often considered the primary treatment. However, other types of cancer treatments, such as radiation, may be used before or after
surgery.

2. Preventive Surgery

Preventive surgery is used to remove tissue that does not contain cancerous cells but may develop into a malignant tumour. For example, polyps in the colon may be considered precancerous tissue and preventative surgery may be performed to remove them.

3. Diagnostic Surgery

Diagnostic surgery helps determine whether cells are cancerous. Diagnostic surgery is used to remove a tissue sample for testing and evaluation (in a laboratory by a pathologist). The tissue samples help to confirm a diagnosis, identify the type of cancer, or determine the stage of cancer.

4. Staging Surgery

During staging surgery, the extent of the cancer or the extent of the disease is discovered. Laparoscopy (a viewing tube with a lens or camera inserted through a small incision to examine the inside of the body and remove tissue samples) is an example of a surgical staging procedure.

5. Debulking Surgery

Debulking surgery removes a portion, though not all, of a cancerous tumour. It is used in certain situations when removing an entire tumour may cause damage to an organ or the body. Other types of cancer treatment, such as chemotherapy and radiation, may be used after debulking surgery is performed.

6. Palliative Surgery

Palliative surgery is used to treat cancer at advanced stages. It does not work to cure cancer, but to relieve discomfort or to correct other problems cancer or cancer treatment may have created.

7. Supportive Surgery

Supportive surgery is similar to palliative surgery because it does not work to cure cancer. Instead, it helps other cancer treatments work effectively. An example of supportive surgery is the insertion of a catheter to help with chemotherapy.

8. Restorative Surgery

Restorative surgery is sometimes used as a follow-up to curative or other surgeries to change or restore a person’s appearance or the function of a body part. Women with breast cancer sometimes need breast reconstruction surgery to restore the physical shape of the affected breast(s). Curative surgery for oral cancer can cause a change in the shape and appearance of a person’s mouth. Restorative surgery may be performed to address these effects.

Ways to prevent cancer

1. Avoid tobacco in all its forms, including exposure to second hand smoke. You don’t have to be an international scientist to understand how you can try to protect yourself and your family.

2. Eat properly. Reduce your consumption of saturated fat and red meat, which may increase the risk of colon cancer and a more aggressive form of prostate cancer. Increase your consumption of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

3. Exercise regularly. Physical activity has been linked to a reduced risk of colon cancer. Exercise also appears to reduce a woman’s risk of breast and possibly reproductive cancers.

4. Stay lean. Obesity increases the risk of many forms of cancer. Calories count; if you need to slim down, take in fewer calories and burn more with exercise vein if you don’t lose weight.

5. Avoid unnecessary radiation exposure. Get medical imaging studies only when you need them. Check your home for residential radon, which increases the risk of lung cancer. Protect yourself from ultraviolet radiation in the sunlight, which increases the risk of melanomas and other skin cancers. But don’t worry about electromagnetic radiation from high-voltage power lines or radiofrequency radiation from microwaves and cell phones as they don’t cause cancer.

6. Avoid exposure to industrial and environmental toxins such as asbestos fibres,
benzene, aromatic amines, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).

7. Make quality sleep a priority. Admittedly, the evidence linking sleep to cancer is not strong. But poor and insufficient sleep increases are associated with weight gain, which is a cancer risk
factor.

8. Get enough vitamin D.Many experts now recommend 800 to 1,000 IU a day, a goal that’s nearly impossible to attain without taking a supplement. Although protection is far from proven,
evidence suggests that vitamin D may help reduce the risk of prostate cancer, colon cancer, and other malignancies. But don’t count on other supplements.

How to care cancer patients

1. Educate yourself – It’s important to educate yourself about the type of cancer your loved one has; this information could be provided by the doctor and other resources could be helpful too.

2. Stay Organized – Keep a record of all previous tests and medication prescriptions. It
will be helpful in regular check-ups and no hassle will be faced on appointment day.

3. Be easy on yourself – Caregivers or family members who are caring for the patient should be easy on themselves because everything does not work as planned and mistakes can occur, so they should stay positive, then only they can keep the patient happy.

4. Remind your loved one that you care. Your loved one may need extra reassurance
that he or she is still needed and loved. Find gifts that reflect who he or she is despite cancer (e.g., books, art, music, tickets to an event). Let your loved one know that you still see him or her as a person, not as a cancer patient.

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Yashoda Hospital

Yashoda Hospital is one of the best super specialty hospitals in Ghaziabad, Noida & Delhi NCR. Yashoda Hospital aims at providing the best healthcare services across the country and not just in Delhi NCR, Ghaziabad & Noida. Being a super speciality hospital, Yashoda Hospital has a number of dedicated specialities under one roof- gastroenterology, general surgery, obstetrics & gynaecology, cardiology, pulmonology & internal medicine, orthopedics, urology and many more.

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