What should you know about prostate cancer removal surgery?

The operation is called a prostatectomy. A surgeon removes the prostate and may also remove the seminal vesicles and nearby lymph nodes, depending on the treatment plan. The bladder is then connected to the urethra so urine can pass again. Surgery can be performed through an open incision or with minimally invasive instruments; a robotic approach is one form of minimally invasive cancer surgery.

Because the prostate sits close to the bladder, urethra, and nerves involved in erections, urinary control and sexual function may change after surgery. A catheter is commonly used while the connection heals. Your team can explain how the planned technique may affect these functions and whether additional treatment, such as radiotherapy, is being considered.

Before surgery, share your medicines, allergies, previous operations, and urinary or sexual symptoms. Ask which medicines to pause, how to prepare for anaesthesia, and who will help at home. After the operation, follow wound and catheter instructions, keep follow-up appointments, and gradually return to walking and other activities as advised. Pelvic floor exercises may help urinary control when your clinician says they are appropriate.

Recovery is individual. Temporary leakage, urgency, tiredness, discomfort, constipation, or blood-tinged urine can occur after an operation, but your discharge instructions should explain what is expected for you. The removed tissue is examined to guide the next discussion about monitoring or further treatment. For background, see [Prostate Cancer](/conditions/prostate-cancer/) and [Prostate Removal Surgery](/treatments/surgical-oncology/prostatectomy/).

Contact your surgical team promptly for fever, worsening pain, increasing redness or drainage from the wound, inability to pass urine after catheter removal, or bleeding that concerns you. Seek urgent help for severe breathing difficulty, chest pain, fainting, sudden confusion, or a painful swollen leg. Difficulty passing urine should be assessed rather than managed by waiting at home; read more about [Difficulty Passing Urine](/symptoms/difficulty-passing-urine/).

Ask: Is surgery suitable for the location and extent of my cancer? What tissues or lymph nodes might be removed? Which surgical approach do you recommend, and why? How will you support urinary control and sexual function? When might a catheter come out? What symptoms require an urgent call? How will pathology results guide follow-up? Could radiotherapy or another treatment be discussed later?