Liver Cancer Treatment & Ongoing Care

Surgical Resection

The tried and true way to deal with liver cancer is resection. Cut them out and leave no microscopic cancer cells behind. A margin of normal tissue is included in the resected specimen. For various reasons, this way of doing things is only available to ten to twenty percent of patients who present with liver cancers. However, it is the “gold standard” today against which other treatment plans are measured. This is an important part of the treatment plan of the patient who is a candidate. Both for hepatocellular carcinomas and for some cancers metastatic to the liver, such as some from the colon and rectum, surgical resection is a mainstay and the standard by which other techniques are measured.

Learn how resection and ablation are used together as a method of liver cancer treatment.

Post-Op and Complications of Surgical Resection

The hospital stay is from 5 to 15 days, depending both on status of the patient’s general health and the health of the remaining liver. Complications occur with any operation and can extend length of stay and recovery. The death rate from hepatic resection is from 1 to 5 % depending on patient, tumor, and operative factors. The patient will be sore for 5 to 10 days, unable to drive for two weeks, and unable to lift for at least a month. A family member or friend will need to help the patient for the first few days after hospital discharge.

Contact my office to learn more about how surgical resection can be a valuable method of liver cancer treatment.