How is surgery done for stomach cancer?

This is major surgery and should be done by surgeons skilled and experienced in managing patients with these cancers. This surgery is usually only performed with ‘curative intent’ such that the goal is to remove the whole visible cancer along with a margin of adjacent normal tissue along with lymph nodes (glands that drain fluid from where the cancer has been). It is often done after some chemotherapy to improve the prognosis. The location of the cancer and the lymph nodes are identified allowing the surgical approach to be determined and how much stomach needs to be removed. This is often by laparoscopic keyhole surgery, although if it is advanced or large open surgery is sometimes used to ensure the best change of complete cancer removal. The cancer is removed and the continuity of the gastro-intestinal tract is reconstructed in a way that is best described in person at your consultation. All the surgery incisions are then closed.