I have a distant in-law, cousin of my wife, who is a doctor of anesthesiology at a fairly prominent regional hospital...<p>He often says that he wishes he had gone into another specialty because of the uncertainties inherent in anesthetizing someone even when they&#x27;re healthy and the most soundly tested protocols are rigidly followed...<p>He recently underwent a surgery to remove a deep dime-sized BCC (basal cell carcinoma)on his cheek near one eye...though the surgery took nearly 2 hours, primarily to minimize scarring, he adamantly refused everything but local anesthesia...<p>Elective surgery, with anesthesia, is not something to consider lightly..