Breast disorders may be noncancerous (benign) or cancerous (malignant) and range from conditions that require no treatment to those that require immediate and major surgery. Common symptoms of breast disorders include breast pain, lumps and nipple discharge. These symptoms will be investigated by mammography, ultrasound and/or a needle biopsy. A needle biopsy involves inserting a needle into an area of the breast and the removal of a small amount of tissue for examination under a microscope. Breast disorders include: fibrocystic change – benign changes in the breast tissue causes it to become dense or “lumpy” fibroadenomas – benign tumours of the breast tissue cysts – fluid-filled sacs breast infections breast cancer. Many of these conditions do not require surgery and I work with other specialists to find out the best treatment plan for you. Breast Cancer Surgery Mastectomy: all breast tissue, skin and the nipple are surgically removed but the muscles lying under the breast are left in place Lumpectomy: the breast lump and surrounding tissue are surgically removed. When combined with radiation treatment, this is known as breast-conserving surgery Axillary Clearance: as breast cancer can spread to the lymph nodes in the armpit, these are commonly removed at the same time as the breast operation Sentinel Node Biopsy: for small cancers, rather than remove many lymph nodes, a single node is removed and tested during the operation. If it is clear of cancer further nodes do not need to be removed The type of surgery is determined by the wishes of the patient, but not all operations are suitable for everyone. Breast Reconstruction When a breast has been removed (mastectomy) because of cancer or other disease, it is possible in most cases to reconstruct a breast similar to a natural breast. A breast reconstruction can be performed as part of the breast removal operation or can be performed months or years later. There are two methods of breast reconstruction: one involves using an implant; the other uses tissue taken from another part of your body. There may be medical reasons why one of these methods is more suitable for you or, in other cases, you may be given a choice.

Abnormalities of the endocrine system treated by general surgery include disorders of the pancreas and adrenal glands in the abdomen and the thyroid and parathyroid glands in the neck. These are often very complex conditions requiring extensive investigations. If surgery is required it is often quite complicated but usually does not require long periods in hospital.

The most common gallbladder problem is gallstones. These are formed if the gallbladder is not working properly, and the standard treatment is to remove the gallbladder (cholecystectomy). This procedure is usually performed using a laparoscopic (keyhole) approach.

Skin conditions dealt with by general surgery include lumps, tumours and other lesions of the skin and underlying tissues. These are often fairly simple conditions that can be dealt with by performing minor operations under local anaesthetic (the area of skin being treated is numbed). Often these procedures are performed as outpatient or day case procedures.

A hernia exists where part of the abdominal wall is weakened, and the contents of the abdomen push through to the outside. This is most commonly seen in the groin area but can occur in other places. Surgical treatment is usually quite straightforward and involves returning the abdominal contents to the inside and then reinforcing the abdominal wall in some way. I specialise in laparoscopic repair of hernias, particularly groin hernias. Laparoscopic repair offers the best chance of quick recovery and most groin hernias are suitable for repair using this technique.