If you are having surgery for pancreatic cancer, there may be some changes to treatment and precautions you need to take because of coronavirus.
If you have recently had surgery, you may be more at risk of getting ill if you get coronavirus while you are recovering from the operation. If your spleen has been removed, your risk from the virus may be higher as the spleen is part of the immune system and helps to protect against infection.
If your cancer is at an early stage and hasn’t spread outside the pancreas, surgery to remove the cancer is the best treatment. This is called resectable or operable pancreatic cancer.
If the cancer has started to grow very close to the main blood vessels near the pancreas, it may also be possible to remove the cancer. But this depends on which blood vessels are affected and also on how far the cancer has grown. This is called borderline resectable cancer. You may be offered chemotherapy to try to shrink the cancer and make surgery possible.
Read more about who can have surgery.
Surgery to remove pancreatic cancer is a big operation, and you will need to be fit enough to have it. As with any big operation, there are some risks, such as getting an infection – read more about the risks.
Speak to your doctor or nurse about whether surgery is an option for you, and whether you will have chemotherapy.
Sometimes the surgeon may start the operation, but find that it’s not possible to remove the cancer because it has grown too far. If this happens, the surgeon may do a different operation, called bypass surgery, to help control symptoms.
If your cancer can’t be removed by surgery, you may be able to have chemotherapy to stop it growing as quickly. There are also ways to treat any symptoms.
To read more about surgery for pancreatic cancer download or order our fact sheet Surgery to remove pancreatic cancer.
There are different types of surgery for pancreatic cancer. The most common type is called a Whipple’s operation. They all involve taking away all or part of the pancreas. The doctors will also remove other organs around the pancreas. Read more about what surgery involves.
You should have chemotherapy after you have recovered from your surgery.
There are some side effects of surgery.
It can take several months, or sometimes longer, to fully recover from surgery for pancreatic cancer.
Surgery to remove pancreatic cancer is a big operation and can affect your feelings as well as your body. But there is support available.
If you able to have surgery, or have had it, our Side by Side telephone service gives you the chance to speak to someone else who has had surgery.
You can also read stories from people who have had surgery in our Real Life Stories.
You can speak to our nurses on our free Support Line about any questions or concerns you may have about surgery.
You can write down any questions you have for your doctor to take with you, so that you don’t forget to ask them. You may also want to take someone with you when you see your doctor. They can write down any important information and the answers to any questions you have.
Published April 2019
Review date March 2021
