Most people with cancer will have some type of surgery.  It plays an important role in diagnosing and staging (finding the extent) of tumors.  Advances in surgical techniques have allowed surgeons to successfully operate on a growing number of patients.  Today, operations are often performed to remove tumors and to preserve as much normal function as possible.

A cancer patient may undergo surgery for several reasons.  When cancer is first suspected, diagnostic surgery (such as a biopsy) is performed to identify the specific cancer and make a diagnosis.  Staging surgery helps determine the extent and amount of disease.  Palliative surgery treats complications of advanced disease.  Curative surgery is used to remove a tumor when it appears to be confined to one area.  Restorative (or reconstructive) surgery restores a person's appearance or the function of an organ or body part.

Curative and Restorative surgery includes bone grafts (such as allografts and allograft prosthetic composites ), prosthetic implants (such as REPIPHYSIS® Expandable Technology and GUARDIAN® Limb Salvage System ), amputation and Van Ness rotationplasty.  These different treatment options and procedures are described further in the following sections.

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