Breast cancer treated by day surgery inhumane and sexist?

[Toadlover]

Due for this in 3-4 weeks. Not a tiny lump, a humungous one with lymph nodes.
In my case, a distant hospital (Haywards Heath - and I live in Brighton)
I am 79 and with many comorbidities. I also had keyhole surgery to repair a mitral (heart) valve in May. It seems a good few people vomit after surgery due to the anaesthetic.
I really don't think that I should be sent home the same day. In fact, I don't think ANYONE should !
Any experiences please?
My plan is to demand a night in hospital after the op.

If you speak to the anaesthetist before the op they can up the anti nausea drug.

i often vomit after surgery and recently I have done this and it’s helped.

I would think the plan is home if you are fit enough to go home?

I had surgery where it was planned I’d go home the same day but because I was unwell afterwards I stayed in.

The place you are most likely to contract an infection is a hospital, if you are well enough and have someone at home it's in your best interests to be discharged. If you are not well enough you won't be discharged, especially given your age and other health issues.

Fine if you are violently ill afterwards but I am not sure demanding to stay in hospital if you are found fit to go home afterwards is always the best thing. Sometimes it can impact other patients. I remember having to spend all day sat on a hard chair in a waiting room on the day of my admission because the previous occupier of my bed refused to leave and 'demanded' to be allowed to stay in the bed until her transport arrived that evening. She was fit to go home and I was in agonising pain from failed spine surgery. I'm sure you can imagine my view on her absolute selfishness. She didn't need the bed and was fit to go home. I needed it. Desperately.

Hey OP, first of all I’m sorry to hear of your diagnosis. I hope you are okay.

I had a mastectomy with reconstruction 3 years ago and was kept in overnight which was standard at the time.
I had another mastectomy with recon in my remaining breast 8 weeks ago and was home the same day. I have to say I much preferred going home the same day but it was always on the understanding that I’d have someone with me for 24 hours. They checked this at least three times before the op. To be totally honest I felt 200 times better after the second op than I did the first.
If there is any reason at all why you shouldn’t go home then they will keep you in. Talk to your surgeon or who ever does the pre-op.

Best of luck for your op and any treatment going forwards.

You need to see how you feel. If you are unwell then ask to stay in but if not, you are better off going home to rest instead of demanding a hospital bed that is likely needed for someone else.

I always feel better off at home. My recent gynae surgery was 8hrs and I stayed until the next morning but still left about 14hrs after waking up from the op
it was meant to be a day case but it took too long for me to go home. So if you’re unwell they won’t shove you out the door

Haywards Heath is hardly a distant hospital from Brighton.

I’m not seeing the sexism here?

I hope the surgery goes well.

I went home the same day after my lumpectomy, and was glad to be out of hospital, but it was a shorter drive than for you. Do you have someone to drive you and stay with you for 24 hours after surgery? That was a condition of being allowed home, and if you don't have that, they may keep you in anyway.

I don't really get how this is inhumane or sexist though. The same provisions apply to lots of other day surgery, for men and women, and as others have said, people often recover better and are less prone to infection if they are at home rather than in a crowded, noisy hospital ward.

Please don't plan to demand a bed in hospital that you don't medically need

Am I correct to presume you're having a lumpectomy? If so, day surgery can be standard. Indeed, have had a lumpectomy as day surgery before as well as other kinds of surgery including a salpingo-oophorectomy. However, I have also had two mastectomies, both done separately, and both involved an overnight stay in hospital as they were much bigger surgeries.

Day surgery is a well-oiled machine, they know exactly which operations are fine performed like this. The team who will be operating on your will be specialist oncoplastic surgeons whom specialise in breast cancer. However, and be assured, if you're not well enough to go home after surgery they will find a bed for you. There is really no need to worry about this unduly.

Hope all goes well with surgery and everything else 💐

Edited to add the hospital will be able to arrange transport for you. You just need someone to accompany you home.

So you're 79 and have lots of co morbidities and you'd rather have a GA and a stay in hospital.........ok

I don’t think the GA is optional!

gosh, some of the responses. The OP is almost 80 and has quite extensive surgery. Most countries would keep you in for a few days. We have just been conditioned to be grateful for getting a surgery at all on the NHS... I would let them know if you don't feel well after surgery. Do you have someone to look after you at home?

If you are unwell afterwards you won't be allowed to go home. My DD had knee surgery and could have gone home same day (very much wanted to) but was too sick, couldn't stand let alone use the crutches.

For a lot of people day surgery is great if you are fit, and it reduces the strain on hospital beds and reduces waiting lists. But if you don't reach the minimum health requirements you won't be allowed home. Mine were that you could walk and get to the bathroom, walk downstairs, had eaten and had something to drink after surgery and had used the toilet successfully, also there had to be someone at home for the next day or two. Also the time of the operation, if it ends up late in the day you won't be recovered enough to go home. You do get a specific emergency number to ring if you have any problems after you get home, at least I did. I assume you would get hospital transport if necessary? In my hospital you could pay for a room for the night in the private part if you wanted a private room it was about £250 a night.

As a general rule people recover better at home. My Dad has had frequent day surgeries but ended up being admitted over night because he doesn’t react well to GA. If you’re medical unfit to be discharged then you will be moved to a different ward.

How is it sexist?

Loads of operations are done as day case now, including many that only affect men.

If at your pre op they think you aren't suitable for day case they will say so. However you can't demand an overnight stay on the basis you might vomit.

Most people would rather go home and sleep in their own bed. A night in hospital is miserable - it's noisy, bright, hot and you're sleeping on a horrible mattress with a plastic undersheet that makes you sweat like crazy. So no, it's not 'inhumane' to send a person home with painkillers if they are well enough. A night at home is infinitely preferable than a night in hospital, believe me.

The key thing here is 'if they are well enough' - if you aren't well enough, they won't send you home. They will obviously check your heart, blood pressure, temperature etc, will make sure you aren't throwing up, will make sure you're able to eat and drink and go to the loo etc before they discharge you.

Also, what's sexist about it? My partner's had day surgery twice, and one of those was for a condition that only affects men.

Sorry to hear about your health issues. Assuming The Princess Royal. (Born and bred Cuckfield. I was nursing over 40 years (not there) it has long been standard procedure to have day surgery for a lot of operations. I had a very major abdominal operation in 2007, in one of the very well known groups (private) pay per day/night for room, and out the same day. You will be assessed, post surgery. I also suffer badly from post anaesthetic vomiting, (very unpleasant and painful after abdo surgery. Discuss with the anaesthetist, having local anaesthetic put into the area and the less GA required, this worked for me. I wish you well, afterwards

'condition that only affects men'
yes, could be inhumane for them to have day surgery only. But presumably contributor is happy to look after him - I live alone (Mea culpa for not saying that)
Sorry if in bad taste - but having grown up in the countryside, if we're talking losing one or both testicles, farmers dealt with it themselves...though to infant animals makes a difference. a less big deal than a big incision anyway.

Op never mentioned driving herself. You are not allowed to drive after a GA or lumpectomy for several days. I remember watching horses being gelded in my childhood without anaesthetic and hearing the screaming.

Although a lumpectomy is tough psychologically it is often not a huge operation. Six weeks ago I had 25% of my breast removed with a reconstruction and was horrified when I first heard that I would be sent home. However, everything was so well organised that I didn’t have any concerns about going home in the end and I stayed in gay surgery for several hours before they were happy for me to leave.
if you don’t have anyone to keep any eye on you for the first 24 hours then I suspect that they will say that you have to stay in but I would go home if you can.

Day surgery!!