Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) is a surgery to remove a herniated or degenerative disc in the neck area of the spine. The incision is made in the front of the spine through the throat area. After the disc is removed, a bone graft is inserted to fuse together the bones above and below the disc space. Your doctor may recommend a discectomy if physical therapy or medications fail to relieve your neck or arm pain caused by pressure on the spinal nerves. Patients typically go home the same day; recovery time takes 4 weeks.