The Day of Surgery

Where do I check in?

• When you get to the hospital, check in at the Surgical Services Registration Desk. It is in M Wing, Ground Floor, Room 502 (MG 502).
• Bring your Ontario Health Card and your Sunnybrook card.
• You will be given a locker space to store your clothes and personal items, such as eye glasses.

How many family members or friends can come with me on the day of surgery?

• Please bring ONLY 1 person with you to the hospital. Your companion will be asked to stay in the waiting room until you are ready for surgery. The person can then be with you until you are called for surgery.
• During your surgery, your family member or friend can wait in room MG 502 (M-Wing, Ground floor, Room 502). Please bring this booklet with you on the day of your surgery.

After all your pre-surgery appointments, you will be taken to the Same Day Surgery Unit. Nurses will do the final checks and an intravenous (IV) will be started in your hand. You will then be brought into the operating room.

What will happen during my surgery?

• Several monitors will be placed on your body to check your heart and lungs during surgery.
• You will be put to sleep using a general anesthetic. Medication to make you sleep will be given through an intravenous needle.
• A tube will be placed in your throat after you are asleep to help you breathe.
• A catheter or tube may be placed in your bladder if you have having a deep or iliac groin dissection. It will be removed before you wake up but when you urinate it may burn a little. The burning goes away within 24 hours. You may also have difficulty starting urination for up to a week after surgery.
• An incision will be made around your groin. Some skin and fatty tissue will be removed. No muscle is removed.
• If you are having a deep groin or iliac dissection then your surgeon will make an incision through your lower abdominal wall. This part of the incision is the most sore after surgery.
• All the tissue that is taken out will be sent to a lab to be examined by a pathologist (a doctor).
• The incision is closed with stitches or staples on the outside of the skin. Two plastic tubes will be placed near the incision to drain fluid from the area. The drains and stitches or staples will be removed by the surgeon at your follow-up appointment after surgery.
• A dressing, or bandage, is then placed over the stiches or staples.
• Your surgeon will discuss the results at your follow-up appointment in the clinic.

What happens after my surgery?

• You will be taken to the recovery room.
• When you wake up you will be moved back to the Same Day Surgery Unit located in M-Wing, Ground Floor, Room 601 (MG 601).
• A nurse will call your family member or friend to come and visit you.
• Most patients leave hospital the same day as surgery.
• Your surgery team will give you a prescription for pain medication before you leave the hospital.
• One of the nurses from the cancer centre will call you the next business day after your surgery..

When will I see my surgeon for a follow-up appointment?

• An appointment will be made for you to see your surgeon 1 to 2 weeks after your operation.
• The surgeon will check how your wound is healing.
• Your surgeon will see you again either in 1 or 2 weeks to check your wound.
• Your surgeon will discuss the results of the tests done on the tissue removed during surgery. This result usually takes 2 to 3 weeks to be ready. Any further treatment options will also be discussed.