Will Any Lymph Nodes Be Removed During Surgery?

March 16, 2009 -- Question: Will any lymph nodes be removed during surgery?

Answer: Lymph nodes are usually removed during prostate surgery. The exception would be patients who had very low-grade, very low-volume tumors. In these patients, the risk of having lymph node metastases is very low, and many surgeons will opt not to remove the lymph nodes. However, in patients who have higher-grade or higher-volume tumors, most surgeons would opt to remove the lymph nodes at the time of the prostatectomy.