What to expect after surgery

After surgery, the patient will have to stay in the hospital for a period of 5-7 days, depending on the type of surgery. On discharge, the patient will be expected to visit the OPD every 2-4 days for follow-up visits till the wound heals completely. Whether or not the patient requires adjuvant chemoradiotherapy/radiotherapy will be decided after the final histopathology report is received, which usually take 21-25 days.

Immediately after surgery, the patient will wake up in the recovery unit before moving back to your ward, within a day or so. These units are busy and often noisy places that some people find strange and disorienting. The patient will feel drowsy because of the anaesthetic and painkillers.

On waking up, the patient might have:

• a drip (intravenous infusion) into the arm to give for fluids 

• a breathing tube in the neck 

• a fine tube into the stomach (gastrostomy tube) or into your stomach via your nose (nasogastric tube) for liquid feeds 

• wound drains in the neck or near the wound

• a tube into the bladder (catheter) to collect and measure urine 

After head and neck cancer surgery, the patient will have trouble with speech and swallowing. This can be frustrating at times. The nurse on duty can give the patient a pen and paper to write down what they want to say.

It’s normal to have pain for the first week or so. The patient will be given painkillers to help. Tell the doctor or nurse if the pain becomes unbearable, so that they may increase the dose as required.

Any surgery to your mouth usually means that the patient can't eat or drink via the mouth for a few days. In case a feeding tube is present, you will have to help the patient in taking adequate feeds. 

Getting up on the day after surgery may seem very difficult at first. The doctors and nurses will encourage the patient to get up and about as soon as possible after the operation. The physiotherapist will visit the patient regularly after the  operation to help with neck and shoulder physiotherapy, mouth opening exercises and chest physiotherapy.