The 33-year-old has endured lingering complications after breaking his right arm in last year's grand final loss and will go under the knife again following Friday night's 14-point AFL semi-final defeat in Perth.
Cameron also had shoulder surgery in July and battled a hip issue throughout 2026.
The dual Coleman Medallist has looked down on both form and confidence in recent months but it's hoped another operation will get his arm back to 100 per cent.
"That's what they're telling me," Geelong coach Chris Scott said.
"He'll get it fixed straight away and it'll be a decent lay-off, but the good news with upper-body injuries is generally you can run.
"He did a remarkable job to get through the year the way he did. It's for others, and mainly for him, to speak about what he put up with his arm but I thought he was terrific the way he hung in.
"And then a really bad shoulder injury that needed surgery, and he came back.Â
"And even the very best players need some continuity in their footy to perform at their best at this level."
Fremantle had the early ascendancy and led at halftime but the Cats refused to die and fought back to claim a short-lived lead late in the third quarter.
Tom Stewart's late goal cut the deficit to eight points with 75 seconds remaining before Fremantle activated Wharfie Time and Patrick Voss booted his fourth goal to seal the win for the Dockers.
Scott was proud of his side's resilience in a game he described as symptomatic of a season in which "a lot of things went wrong".
Ollie Henry was terrific with five goals and Bailey Smith racked up 29 disposals but star midfielder Max Holmes finished with 18 touches and Gryan Miers had just 12, having played through much of the season with a partially torn anterior cruciate ligament.
Holmes fractured his right ankle and suffered a syndesmosis injury in the Cats' round 20 win over St Kilda but managed to defy the odds to return for the finals after undergoing surgery.
"Initially the prognosis was that he might make a prelim final," Scott said.
"So to come back and play two finals the way he did was ultra-impressive and speaks to his professionalism.
"A couple more weeks would have had him closer to himself."
Midfielder Tom Atkins however insisted the hobbled Cats had been prepared for the intensity of a sudden-death final.
"They were all fine, they were all ready to go," he said.
"It is tough obviously getting back from an injury. The rehab process is a really tough one. But once they lined up tonight they were ready to go, they were 100 per cent so there's no excuses there."
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