During the past 10 years, mortality rates after cancer surgery have improved by 0.12%–0.14%, depending on race, researchers reported in study findings published in JAMA Network Open. However, the gap between outcomes for Black and White patients remains, they found.

Forty-eight percent of women with gynecologic cancers report experiencing clinically significant fatigue after surgery that may continue six months (44%) and one (39%) year later, researchers reported in study findings published in Cancer.

Because of limited preliminary evidence that the use of robotic-assisted surgical devices for treatment or prevention of women’s cancers may be associated with diminished long-term survival, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a reminder warning to healthcare providers and the public in February 2019 that the technique has not been FDA approved for this purpose.

Women with early-stage cervical cancer have higher recurrence rates and worse overall survival with minimally invasive radical hysterectomy than abdominal radical hysterectomy, according to the results of two studies published in the New England Journal of Medicine.  

With the ubiquity of smartphones and, more recently, smart watches and fitness trackers, the potential to use these devices to monitor and assist patients with cancer has never been greater. Being able to monitor and respond to patient data through fitness trackers could help healthcare professionals provide swift, accurate interventions in the future. Our proof-of-concept study, “Wireless Monitoring Program of Patient-Centered Outcomes and Recovery Before and After Major Abdominal Cancer Surgery,” explored the feasibility and acceptability of using technology, including fitness monitors, to efficiently monitor patient-generated health data by answering the following questions: 

In 2000, I was diagnosed with stage III esophageal cancer—adenocarcinoma—and was put on a treatment regimen of chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and ultimately surgery to my esophagus. After talking with my doctors and nurses, heartburn was determined to be the cause of cancer. I didn’t realize at the time that survival rates for my disease were extremely low. 

People often use idioms—such as “going under the knife” as a euphemism for surgery—to avoid confronting distressing situations, which is even more pronounced when it comes to life events as serious as cancer. But for many patients with cancer, undergoing a surgical procedure is key to positive outcomes, and they count on the expert clinical care and support of their surgical oncology nurses to see them through it.

In just seven years, the rates of women who received prophylactic bilateral mastectomies after a diagnosis of unilateral breast cancer skyrocketed—though many don't require bilateral mastectomy. So what’s causing the increase in unnecessary surgery?

Patients with late-stage non-small cell lung cancer who have surgery have better survival rates than those who don’t, according to the results of a recent study published in the Annals of Thoracic Surgery. The researchers also reported that despite the improved survival from surgery, fewer patients are receiving the treatment.