Liver Resection

Liver surgery has been thought of as particularly major and dangerous surgery, and few surgeons have been trained to do it. For this reason it is not widely available or practised. However over the last 15-20 years international experience with the techniques has grown and today, providing it is performed where appropriate experience exists, it can be accomplished with relative safety and few major problems.

If cancer is present in a single site within the liver or multiple tumours are present but confined to one area of the liver, that area (up to 75% of the liver) may be surgically removed. Because the liver is capable of regeneration, removal of such large amounts can usually be carried out with return to full and normal health. The surgery is certainly major and carries a significant risk of dying, which at the Wakefield Clinic is around five percent depending on the complexity of the surgery required. However after this surgery some 25-40% of patients may be "cured" of their cancer and most of the others will live for longer than if the surgery had not been performed. The average survival time of patients with colorectal liver secondaries treated in this way at Wakefield Hospital has been three years. One can expect the quality of life to be normal or near normal for most of this time.

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