I had my middle and lower lobe of my right lung removed this past July. The chest tube is the worst part you will deal with after surgery. It stays in for about 2 days. I remember waking up after surgery noticing a sharp pain in my shoulder and thought why is my shoulder hurting?! The tube is placed in your back from your shoulder to the bottom of your lung to remove fluid. They will try the best they can to manage your pain. Where are you having the surgery at? Mine was at Mayo and it was done via VATS which is 3 small incisions. I only had pain with my incisions up to 3 weeks. I used a heating pad which made it feel more comfortable. The recliner was my best friend. I found it difficult to lay in my bed at first. Any other questions please ask. You will do great and find such relief that the cancer is removed after surgery!

I had my left upper lobe removed a year ago today and have to say it wasn’t bad at all. IV Toradol and Oxycodone helped a lot. The only real acute pain I had was after they removed the chest tube. They left the pigtail in and I think it was just the position of that tube. I was in the hospital for only 2 nights and was able to host Thanksgiving dinner a little over a week later. I made a couple dishes but others did most of the work. Good luck with your surgery!

Hello @mcohan
I had the right lower lobe of my lung removed last November (the day before Thanksgiving) at the Mayo hospital in Phoenix I order to remove an adenocarcinoma tumor. All in all the surgical recovery was not too bad (it was a video assisted surgery). I had two incisions on my right side and they utilized a nerve block procedure which I believe really decreased any pain. I had a turkey dinner on Thanksgiving, was released on Friday and off of the pain meds a few days later. The chest tube was removed while in the hospital without any anesthesia. However, keep in mind that everyone is different in regards to the procedures used and their recovery process. I would suggest that you ask your surgeon (or their assistance) to walk you through what procedures they are going to use and what the recovery process is likely to be like. Knowing what to expect takes away a lot of the anxiety.

Good luck and have a successful recovery!