Mesothelioma Help

After your mesothelioma surgery

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

After the operation you will be cared for in a high dependency or intensive care unit. You will have a few tubes in place when you wake up. Depending on the operation you have had, you may have

An intravenous infusion (drip) to give you liquid
Drainage tubes from your chest to stop fluid collecting there
A tube down your nose and into your stomach to stop you feeling sick
An oxygen mask
A tube into your bladder so you won't have to get up to pass urine and so that your nurse can record your urine output (this helps to show that your kidneys are working properly)
A fine tube going into your back, carrying painkillers

The drip will be taken out as soon as you can start eating and drinking again. After surgery for pleural mesothelioma, this is usually the day after the operation.

After peritonectomy, it may be longer before you can eat or drink. Your doctor will listen to your abdomen with a stethoscope. As soon as the doctor can hear your bowel working again, you will be able to start taking sips of water. Gradually you will work up to eating and drinking normally.

The drainage tubes usually stay in as long as they carry on draining fluid. This could be more than a week. If you have had just the pleura removed, you will have one or two tubes called chest drains coming out of your chest on the side where you have had your surgery. These are attached to glass bottles, which are attached to some gentle suction. The suction helps your lung on that side to re-inflate after collapsing during the operation. Sometimes, the drains may just be connected to a drainage bag.

The nurses will help you to get up and move around gently as soon as possible. This helps you to get better and makes complications such as chest infections or blood clots much less likely.

Painkillers

You will almost certainly have some discomfort for the first few days after your operation. But there is no reason why your pain cannot be kept under control. There are many pain killing drugs you can have. If you are in pain, it is important you tell the nurse or doctor as soon as possible. With your help, they will be able to find the right type and dose of painkiller for you. There is information on different types of painkillers in our pain control section.

After most major chest operations, the side of the chest is kept numb by a local anaesthetic pumped into your spine. This is called an epidural. It is a very effective way of controlling pain. The tube that carries the anaesthetic is put in while you are still asleep in the operating theatre. It will stay in for up to a week, even when you are up and about. There is a little more information on epidurals in our pain control section.

After your epidural has been removed, you may still need painkillers to keep you comfortable. Painkillers work best when you take them regularly, so don't suffer in silence. It is important for you to be comfortable so that you can breathe deeply, cough and move around as freely as possible. All these activities will help stop a chest infection or blood clot developing.

Pain can sometimes be a long term problem following this type of operation but there are effective medications you can have. Pain may start a few weeks or months after their operation. This is usually because nerve endings that have been damaged during the operation have started to grow back. This pain will go when the nerve endings have recovered, but can take some time to get better. If you have any pain after your operation, do go and see your doctor to find out what is causing the pain. If they can't sort it out right away, a referral to a pain clinic will almost certainly help.

After these types of surgery most people find that they can return to their normal social live and pastimes. But, because of the mesothelioma, few people ever return to full time work. You may be able to get disability living allowance or attendance allowance after this type of major treatment. Some surgeons tell people that they should try to enjoy life to the full. The surgery is likely to slow down the disease, but it will come back at some point. If financially possible, you may want to give up work anyway and do some of the things you've never had time for.

Going home

You can usually go home about a week after pleurectomy and about 2 weeks or so after extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP).

Your stitches will need to come out about 2 weeks after your operation. You may be asked to come back to the hospital or to go to your GP surgery to have this done. You will be given an outpatients appointment before you leave the hospital. Once you have recovered from EPP, your surgeon will refer you to a cancer specialist to have chemotherapy or radiotherapy.

Remember - if you have any worries or symptoms before your out-patient appointment, contact your doctor or the hospital ward। You should not wait until your first out-patient appointment if you have a query or problem.

http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk

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