Potential risks of colorectal cancer surgery
- The colon and rectum has bacteria naturally naturally in it, so there is a risk of infection. Often times before the surgery we will have you undergo a bowel cleanse. Both to empty out any stool in your colon as well as with antibiotics to decrease the number of bacteria in your colon.
- The colon and rectum have a very good blood supply, presenting a possible risk of bleeding during the procedure. As specialized general surgeon in colorectal surgery, when we perform the surgery, we tie off those blood vessels and make sure there is no ongoing evidence of bleeding.
- When we remove part of the colon and put it back together, that is called an anastomosis, and that anastomosis needs to heal. So there is a risk that if it doesn’t heal, that’s something called a “leak”. This may cause a need for other procedures or being placed on antibiotics or even surgery again to repair or fix this problem.
- The colon is associated with other parts of your intestine, the small intestine, as well as other organs - such as the kidneys, stomach and spleen. When we’re performing the surgery, we have to be very careful not to damage those.
- In addition, especially for rectal cancer surgery, there are very important nerves in the area that go into your pelvis, so we have to be very careful not to damage those nerves as well.
Dr. Joshua Taylor, MD, FACS is a general surgeon with The Surgical Clinic at TSC Rutherford in Smyrna, TN.
