The purpose of this study is to understand the patient experience with an adverse event after surgery. An adverse event is an undesirable experience or complication associated with your surgery.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Age 18 or older

• Patients who had elective surgery for a primary colorectal cancer within the last 90 days.

• Patients who either:

  • Develop an eligible complication (Appendix 1) within 30 days of surgery (n = 25 - 30)
  • Do not develop any complication after surgery (n = 25 - 30)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Multivisceral resections
• Metastatic or locally-recurrent disease
• Physical impairment that may prevent participation in an interview or survey setting
• Active psychiatric illness, cognitive or sensory impairment
• Inability to speak or understand English
• Refusal to participate in an audio-recorded interview
• Inability to participate in an audio-recorded interview for reasons not otherwise specified
• Any second surgical procedure unrelated to the complication within the 90-day period

Patients at MSK