What will I feel like after abdominal surgery for mesothelioma? Will I have complications?

After an abdominal procedures to remove amounts of tumor and peritoneum, and also have chemotherapeutic agents put into the abdomen, you will awaken with drains in place. You will have a system in place for pain control. Sometimes chemotherapy will be delivered into your abdomen through a tube after surgery.

After any abdominal surgery, your intestinal tract will not function properly for some time. The lack of intestinal mobility is caused an ileus. You will have this, and in some patients, it is prolonged. Using the chemotherapeutic agents in the abdomen may make some complications more likely. However, very little of the chemotherapeutic agents gets into the blood stream, which is why this is a good way to get chemotherapy.

The rate of complications after this surgery ranges from 20 to 35%. In addition to complications that can happen after any surgery, you can have complications related to your procedure. Some of these include a hole in any of your organs, especially your intestines or other stomach. This would need another surgery to correct. The number of complications is mostly related to how much tumor was found in your abdomen, and how much surgery was needed to remove it and repair the areas.

Recovery time is related to whether or not you have complications, how quickly your intestines start to work, and how soon you can get up and around. Like any other major surgery, it may take 6 to 8 weeks for you to feel more like yourself. Depending on the procedure, you may be more comfortable after healing than before the surgery, because there will not be tumor or fluid pressing on your internal organs.