Adrenal surgery, or adrenalectomy, removes one adrenal gland, or occasionally both. These small glands sit on top of each kidney and make cortisol, aldosterone, adrenaline and some sex hormones. Surgery is advised for tumours that overproduce hormones, for nodules that are large or look suspicious on scans, and for adrenal cancer.
Removing a hormone-producing tumour can cure or greatly improve conditions such as Conn syndrome, Cushing syndrome or phaeochromocytoma. It cannot always reverse long-standing high blood pressure, and many small non-functioning nodules found by chance need no operation at all.
What Adrenal Surgery (Adrenalectomy) involves
Before surgery an endocrinologist confirms with blood and urine hormone tests whether the nodule is active, and a CT or MRI maps it. Phaeochromocytoma needs 1 to 2 weeks of blood pressure tablets (alpha blockade) beforehand to make anaesthesia safe. Most operations are laparoscopic: under general anaesthetic, three or four small ports are placed in the side of the abdomen or through the back, the gland is freed from the kidney and surrounding fat, its vein is clipped and the gland is removed in a bag. Large or possibly cancerous tumours are removed through an open incision so that the tumour stays intact. The specimen always goes to pathology.
Who is a good candidate for Adrenal Surgery (Adrenalectomy)?
The decision rests on hormone test results, the size of the nodule and how it looks on imaging, not on the presence of a nodule alone.
- Confirmed aldosterone-producing adenoma on one side, ideally proven by adrenal vein sampling
- Cushing syndrome caused by an adrenal tumour
- Phaeochromocytoma after proper medical preparation
- Nodules larger than about 4 cm or growing, or with suspicious scan features
- Suspected adrenal cancer, or a single metastasis in selected cases
It is usually not the right choice if:
- Small, non-functioning, benign-looking incidental nodules, which are simply monitored
- Hormone excess coming from both glands, which is usually treated with medication
- Phaeochromocytoma that has not yet been blocked with medication
- People unfit for general anaesthesia
- Anyone who has not had a full hormone work-up
الخيارات التقنية
- Laparoscopic transabdominal adrenalectomy: The standard approach for most benign tumours up to about 6 cm.
- Posterior retroperitoneoscopic adrenalectomy: Keyhole access through the back, useful after previous abdominal surgery or for both sides.
- Robotic adrenalectomy: Same principle as laparoscopy with robotic instruments; outcomes are similar, cost is higher.
- Open adrenalectomy: For large or invasive tumours and suspected adrenocortical carcinoma.
- Partial (cortex-sparing) adrenalectomy: Considered in hereditary or bilateral disease to try to avoid lifelong steroid replacement.
ماذا يحدث خلال علاجك
Keyhole adrenalectomy takes 1 to 2 hours under general anaesthesia; open surgery takes longer. With phaeochromocytoma your blood pressure is monitored through an arterial line and may swing during the operation. Afterwards you have small dressings, moderate discomfort controlled with tablets, and you usually eat and walk the same evening or next morning. After surgery for Cushing syndrome you start hydrocortisone straight away because the remaining gland is asleep.
الإعداد لرحلتك
Plan for 8 to 12 days in Istanbul. Your surgeon reviews photographs and your medical history before you book, and you meet in person the day before surgery for examination, marking and consent with a professional interpreter.
- Stop smoking and nicotine at least four weeks before and after surgery; it is the single biggest avoidable cause of wound problems
- Tell the team about every medicine and supplement you take; blood thinners, some herbal products and hormone treatment may need to be paused on your doctor's advice
- Arrange for someone to travel with you or to be reachable, and keep the first days at home free of work and lifting
- Book a changeable return flight; your surgeon confirms when you are fit to fly
التعافي والنتائج
Most people stay 1 to 3 nights after keyhole surgery and 5 to 7 after open surgery. Light activity is possible within a week, desk work in 1 to 2 weeks and heavy lifting after 4 to 6 weeks. Blood pressure and potassium are rechecked in the first days and tablets are reduced. After Cushing syndrome, steroid replacement may be needed for 6 to 18 months and tiredness and aching joints during this time are common. Pathology results take about a week.
- Back to everyday activity: 1 to 2 weeks
- When results show: Hormone levels fall within days
- How long they last: Permanent if the tumour is benign and fully removed
سياسة السلامة والمخاطر والتنقيح
In experienced hands laparoscopic adrenalectomy has a low complication rate, but the glands lie close to large vessels and other organs.
- Bleeding, including from the adrenal vein or vena cava, occasionally needing conversion to open surgery or transfusion
- Injury to nearby organs such as the spleen, pancreas, liver or kidney
- Dangerous blood pressure swings during phaeochromocytoma surgery
- Adrenal insufficiency after surgery, with a risk of adrenal crisis if steroids are missed
- Wound infection, hernia at a port site, chest infection or blood clots
- High blood pressure that persists despite removal of the tumour
- Recurrence, mainly with adrenal cancer or hereditary tumours
Every written proposal arranged through Clinic-Y states what the clinic covers if a correction is needed. Ask for it before you book, not after.
Cost of Adrenal Surgery (Adrenalectomy) in Türkiye
Clinic-Y does not publish a single price for Adrenal Surgery (Adrenalectomy), because the honest figure depends on your case. What moves it:
- Keyhole, robotic or open approach
- Extent of hormone testing and imaging needed, including adrenal vein sampling
- Length of stay and any intensive care monitoring, especially for phaeochromocytoma
- Pathology and any genetic testing
Send your photographs or reports and you receive written, all-inclusive proposals from suitable teams, side by side. Reviewing your case is free.
الأسئلة المتكررة
Can I live normally with one adrenal gland?
Yes. One healthy gland makes enough hormones. Only if both are removed, or the remaining one is suppressed, do you need replacement tablets.
Will my blood pressure be cured?
After surgery for Conn syndrome potassium normalises in almost everyone, and blood pressure is cured in roughly a third to a half and improved in most others. Long-standing hypertension is less likely to disappear completely.
Do all adrenal nodules need removing?
No. Most nodules found by chance are harmless. They need hormone tests once and sometimes a repeat scan, not surgery.
Can the work-up be done at home first?
Yes, and it helps. Bring hormone results and scan images so the team can confirm the plan before you travel.