Scared of lung surgery🥺

Arabella13

Hey guy I’m 22 years old and have been battling cancer from 2 years now.It was at my back but now it moved to my lungs.I recently just finished 6 rounds of chemo and unfortunately the biggest tumor increased in size so I have to undergo surgery.The doctors have assured me that everything will be fine and the my lungs will work just as normal when I recover but I’m scared. To all those who have had a reasonable or even small part of your lungs removed, how is life after surgery? and any advice ? Thank you

loveall2

Hi Arabella. I have been battling Lung ca since 2015, I am 68 yrs old, The first one was upper RT Lobe, all of that was removed, next year LT Lung resection, 1 yr later another tumor popped up mid chest,,Had radiation for that one, 1.5 yrs later another lung tumor left lung area, 6 months ago had radiation again for another tumor in lung close to esophagus, so take courage, u are very young and can beat this...My lungs have served me well after all of this, a little sob with steps but all in all managing my life well. Hope this helps. Good Luck.

Sharon5922

Hello. I'm sorry you are going through lung surgery. There are several ways to do this surgery, which includes a wedge resection to a total removal of the lobe containing the cancerous growth. Long story short, I had a lobectomy of the upper right lobe of my lung in December. (Total lobectomy is recommended for primary lung tumor, can't say if this is relevant to your specifics.) This type of surgery is definitely scary but there are procedures in place to control pain and typically you will have a team to monitor you pre- and post surgery.

Yes, it hurts but pain control is in place with this type of surgery (hospital ICU) so generally this is addressed promptly. I was sent home within 36 hours of this major surgery. (likely due to increased COVID, flu and RSV taking up hospital space making it riskier to be there) However, I had a nerve block, which at this date, 3 weeks later, is still working. It initially sorta felt like my right lung is a block of ice. Yes, intermnittent stabbing pain at incisions which can be controlled by the pain meds. I had VATs (Video assisted thoracic surgery) which is where they make 4-5 incisions versus one big 6-8 inch J incision.

I think this really helps on recovery because the cuts are what is taking longest to heal. But I am no expert, I'm not feeling pain in the lung that was removed. Breathing, other than immediately after surgery, is fine. Could not cough immediately and then when I did, had to hold pillow on chest to prevent pressure on stitches. The main effect is a reduction in lung volume as I have less to work with. This in itself, is not really an issue. People can live for years without a lung and these surgeries typically only remove a wedge or a lobe and not a total lung.

I hope this helps. Good luck.

Sharon

Sharon5922

PS - the tube down the throat was probably as painful as the surgery, I told them that I did not want to wake up to this and they assured me it would be removed before they woke me. Just an aside that sometimes things that cause pain are not relevant to anything other than it exists and you may want to know about it

deelo

Arabella,

I'm sorry you are going thru this. I had lung cancer at 38 and had the entire top lobe removed on my left side. It was the best way to get rid of my cancer and it worked! it was several months before I was 100% back to normal. But I would do it again. I was able to do pretty much anything I wanted to do. I could still workout and jog. I chased after my kids and worked in the garden. I went back to work in 6 weeks and just keep going. You are young and as long as you believe you will be ok... it will happen. Stay calm and don't stress out. You will heal faster.

best of luck...sending good vibes!

Arabella13

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1702652#Comment_1702652

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1702652#Comment_1702652

Thank you so much 🥺❤️

Arabella13

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1702811#Comment_1702811

Thank you so much 🥺❤️

Arabella13

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1702796#Comment_1702796

Thank you so much 🥺❤️

CB_survivor13

I had left lung removed in May and am back to walking about 2 miles a day.

I'm a bit slower and laugh at the fact I can't walk as fast and have trouble walking and talking (I'm a big talker), but I really can do most things. Once in a while I forget I need to slow down and have to wait a few minutes to catch my breath. I may even be able to go back to my old goal of hiking the Blue Ridge Parkway at 70...I may just have to take smaller bites.

You will do great, just remember one step at a time, be patient with yourself and keep reminding yourself that you are discovering your new normal.

Also, If you have nerve pain, Arnica is a natural product, made from a flower. that comes in gel to apply topically--just be sure to avoid contact with open wounds and in sugar pills that you dissolve under your tongue. Do your research but they helped me get off the pain meds the first week after surgery.

Kamelita

Hi, I had a lobectomy 1 year ago and healed great with no problems. My only issue is that it happened so fast there was no time to process having cancer. So now I have panic attacks but at least I am alive and well. Be strong, life is a weird journey for all of us.