A Lobectomy: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

"Ow! I've had several operations in the past but none nearly as difficult as this one."

I wrote those words 20 years ago, just days after surgery to remove a 5-centimeter lung tumor. I had just come home from the hospital, still in significant pain, trying to process what my body had been through.

Looking back now, I can sum up my experience this way: the good, the bad, and the ugly.

The Good

What is a lobectomy?

First, let me explain what a lobectomy is – because I didn't fully understand it myself until my surgeon explained it to me.

Our lungs are divided into sections called lobes. Think about peeling an orange and the divided sections inside. Our right lung has three lobes, and the left lung has two, to make room for the heart. A lobectomy is surgery to remove one of those lobes, usually to take out a tumor.

In my case, I actually had a bi-lobectomy, meaning two lobes of my right lung were removed. Some patients may need more extensive surgery called a pneumonectomy, where the entire lung is removed.

It's funny to remember now but when the doctor first told me about the surgery, I asked if I would need to be hooked up to a machine to breathe. But, of course, that was not the case. In fact, I pretty much do everything I want to do—except run.

Any type of lung surgery may sound scary – and it certainly was for me. But the goal of these surgeries is the same: to remove the cancer completely and give you the best possible chance at long-term survival.

Surgery and the chance for a cure

Let's start here – because this is important.

If you are a candidate for a lobectomy, there's a good chance your lung cancer was caught at an earlier stage. When surgeons can remove the cancer, your chances of a cure increase significantly.

That was true for me.

After surgery, my pathology report showed that several lymph nodes were removed and all were negative for the presence of cancer. In my case, the surgery did exactly what it was supposed to do.

It saved my life.

But…just to be on the safe side, due to my tumor being larger than 3 centimeters, I also was given adjuvant chemotherapy. (Adjuvant means it was given after my primary treatment, which was surgery.)

The Bad

Now for the bad part. I won't sugarcoat.

The surgery – and especially the recovery – was incredibly difficult.

I had what they call a traditional thoracotomy, an open surgery where the ribs are spread to access the lung. And the pain that followed was unlike anything I had experienced.

In one of my blog posts at the time, I wrote:

"Pain relief was my only concern."

That was not an exaggeration.

After surgery, even small things felt like major milestones.

"Unless you've gone for 10 days without a shower you can't imagine how wonderful that hot water felt."

But the reality is, recovery didn't end when I left the hospital. It took time – more time than I expected.

How lung cancer surgery has changed

The important part for you to know is this: Lung cancer surgery has changed dramatically since then.

Today, most lobectomies are done using minimally invasive techniques like video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) or robotic-assisted surgery, which often mean smaller incisions, less pain, and faster recovery.

So, while my experience was tough, yours may very well be significantly easier.

The Ugly

This is the part people don't always talk about.

Yes, there's a scar. My scar has faded significantly over the years. But it is a reminder of what I've been through. The real "ugly" wasn't just what you could see. It was what lingered.

The physical side effects that linger

The nerve pain didn't disappear overnight. I had long-term sensitivity along my incision and rib area. For years, I couldn't comfortably wear a bra. Even clothing could feel irritating.

The emotional weight of surgery

And then there's the emotional side.

In that same blog post, I wrote:

"We made it through the surgery – which is a huge battle – but the war on cancer continues."

Surgery felt like a finish line, but it wasn't. It was one giant step in a much longer journey.