On the day of eye cancer surgery

Your nurse will go through a series of questions on a checklist to make sure you are ready for surgery. They ask you to:

• tell them when you last had something to eat and drink

• change into a hospital gown

• put on a pair of anti embolism stockings - these help prevent blood clots

• take off any jewellery - you may be able to keep a wedding ring on

• remove contact lenses if you have them

• wear a hospital identification band - this is normally on your wrist

If you have false teeth you can usually keep them in until you get to the anaesthetic room.

Your nurse might give you a tablet or an injection to help you relax. This will be an hour or so before you go to the operating theatre. This makes your mouth feel dry. But you can rinse your mouth with water to keep it moist.

Your nurse and a porter take you to theatre on a trolley if you’ve had this medicine. You can walk down to the theatre if you haven't had any.

Having an anaesthetic

You have an anaesthetic so that you can’t feel anything during the operation. You have this in the anaesthetic room or the operating theatre.

All the doctors and nurses wear theatre gowns, hats and masks. This reduces your chance of getting an infection.