After surgery for testicular cancer

Your recovery depends on the type of surgery you have and your general health. 

After surgery to remove the testicle, most people can go back to normal activities after 2 weeks. But removing lymph nodes from the stomach (abdomen) is a major operation. Your hospital stay and recovery time will be longer. 

After removing a testicle (orchidectomy)

When you wake up

You wake up in the recovery area next to the operating theatres.

At first you’ll be wearing a mask or have small tubes into your nose (nasal cannulae) to give you oxygen. You might feel dizzy and lack energy to begin with.

You have a blood pressure cuff on your arm and a little clip on your finger to measure your pulse and oxygen level.

Once you are more awake, your nurse will take you back to the ward. They will measure your blood pressure and check your dressings regularly.

Pain

Your groin and scrotum may be uncomfortable for a week or so. The area may be bruised and look swollen. You will have painkillers to help relieve any pain you have.

Your wound

You have a few stitches in your groin. And you usually have a dressing covering the wound. This can be removed the day after your surgery. You are likely to have stitches that dissolve. It can take up to 2 weeks or sometimes longer for the stitches to dissolve fully. If you have stitches that need to be removed your nurse will arrange an appointment for this.

Going home

You can usually go home later that day but might need to stay in hospital overnight.

Most people can go back to normal activities, including work, after about 2 weeks. But you might need to avoid heavy lifting and strenuous exercise for a month.

Your nurse will give you more information about activities and exercise you can do while you are recovering at home.

After removing lymph nodes

Surgery to remove lymph nodes at the back of your tummy (abdomen) is called a retroperitoneal lymph node dissection (RPLND). 

This is a bigger operation than having surgery to remove your testicle. Your hospital stay and recovery time will be longer.  

When you wake up

After a big operation, you may wake up in the intensive care unit or a high dependency recovery unit. You usually move back to the ward within a day or so.

In intensive care you have one to one nursing care. In the high dependency unit you have very close nursing care. Your surgeon and anaesthetist review you regularly and watch your progress closely.

These units are busy and often noisy places that some people find strange and disorientating. You'll feel drowsy because of the anaesthetic and painkillers.

Tubes and drains

When you wake up, you’ll have several tubes in you. This can be frightening, so it helps to know what they’re for.

You may have:

• drips (intravenous infusions) to give you fluids until you are eating and drinking again

• a tube into your bladder (catheter) to measure how much urine you pass

• wound drains to drain any blood or fluid

• a nasogastric tube down your nose and into your stomach to drain it and stop you feeling sick

You may also have:

• a blood pressure cuff on your arm

• a clip on your finger to measure your pulse

• a pump containing painkillers going into your drip

• a hand controlled pump to give yourself extra painkillers

• an oxygen mask on

Painkillers

Your wound will be sore or painful at first but your nurse will give you painkillers to help relieve the pain

Tell your doctor or nurse as soon as you feel pain. They need your help to find the right type and dose of painkiller for you. Painkillers work best when you take them regularly. 

Immediately after surgery you might have painkillers through a drip into your bloodstream that you control (PCA or patient controlled analgesia) 

You get painkillers to take home. Follow the instructions your nurse gives you.

They will talk to you about:

• how often to take them

• when to take them

• what side effects you may get

Contact your doctor or hospital 24 hour advice line if you still have pain or if it gets worse.

Your wound

You have dressings over your wounds. After a couple of days your nurse changes the dressings and cleans your wounds. The wound drains will be left in until they stop draining fluid. Your nurse can usually take out the wound drains 1 to 2 days after your operation. 

You might have stitches or clips or staples to close the wound. These stay in for at least 7 to 10 days. Your nurse may take them out before you go home. Or a nurse at your GP practice or a district nurse can usually remove them.

Before you go home, the nurse gives you information about how to care for the wound.

Getting up 

Your nurses and physiotherapists will help you to move around as soon as possible, You should have your painkillers before you have to get out of bed.

They will check you’re doing your breathing and leg exercises. This helps you recover and helps to stop chest infections and blood clots.

During the first few days after your operation you’ll start to feel better. The tubes, bottles, and bags will be taken away. Then it will be much easier to get around. You should be able to go home after about 7 days. But this varies from person to person. 
It can take a few weeks for the wound to fully heal and for your energy levels to return. And can take around 2 to 4 months to fully recover. For some people it may take longer.

You should avoid strenuous exercise and heavy lifting for at least 6 weeks. Your surgeon will give you more information about this.

Eating and drinking 

Your nurse may start offering you sips of water the following day. You usually have a nasogastric tube to help stop you becoming bloated. This is removed a few days after your surgery. You can gradually start to drink and eat over the next few days.

The surgery can cause constipation . It is easier to sort out if you treat it early. Tell your healthcare team if you think you are constipated, they can advise you on what to eat and drink following your surgery. They can give you a laxative if needed.

Surgery to other parts of the body

Sometimes testicular cancer can spread to other parts of the body. For example, it can spread to the lungs or the brain. You might have surgery to remove the cancer.

Your surgeon will give you more information about your recovery if you need to have this specialised surgery.

Follow up appointments 

You'll have follow up appointments to check your recovery and sort out any problems. They're also your opportunity to raise any concerns you have about your progress. 

You usually see your surgeon a couple of weeks after your operation. They'll examine you and check your wound is healing well. They'll give you the results of your surgery and talk about any further treatment you might need.

Find out about possible problems after surgery

There is a risk of problems or complications after any operation. Many problems are minor but some can be more serious. 

Possible problems after testicular cancer surgery depend on which type of operation you have.