My leg is swollen after lung cancer surgery, what’s wrong with it?

Some patients are bedridden for many days after lung cancer surgery and suddenly feel swelling and pain in their legs.

This could be a blood clot “growing” in a vein, the “scientific name” for deep vein thrombosis (DVT), which, as the name implies, means that blood clots in the vein, blocking it and preventing blood from flowing properly. This is a condition in which the blood cannot flow properly.

Why does it happen?

Surgical procedures, cancer, chemotherapy, intravenous cannulation, medications, and tourniquets can damage the walls of the veins and trigger a clotting reaction, causing blood to clot. Reduced activity, prolonged bed rest or even maintaining a certain fixed position in cancer patients after surgery can slow blood flow. The end result is thrombosis, and it is particularly likely to occur in the legs. It occurs more often in the elderly.

What are the manifestations?

When a blood clot forms in a leg vein, you may feel swelling and pain on one side of your leg, and your skin may turn purple and dark.

More dangerously, a blood clot that breaks off the vein wall and travels with the blood to the lungs can block a pulmonary artery, called pulmonary embolism (PE), which causes sudden difficulty breathing, chest pain, and fainting; a large pulmonary embolism can also be rapidly fatal.

If you experience these symptoms, report them to your healthcare provider immediately so that your doctor can treat them promptly.

How do I prevent and treat it?

There are some ways to reduce the risk of postoperative blood clots. Wear elastic stockings before surgery, cooperate with your doctor after surgery by doing deep breathing and coughing motions, and get off the floor as soon as you are stable and do not stay in bed for long periods of time.

If your doctor suspects that you have a DVT, the diagnosis will be confirmed by ultrasound and pulmonary angiography. The treatment will vary depending on the condition.

Low-molecular heparin anticoagulation may be used. If a large embolism occurs, it may require drug lysis of the clot or surgical removal of the clot. Surgical embolization is usually done through a minimally invasive intervention, making an entrance through the peripheral artery and removing the clot from the vessel. Either way, there is a risk of causing bleeding, and physicians will balance this carefully.