Community

My husband was diagnosed with stage 4 rectal cancer last june he had mets on his liver. He completed his radiation and chemo treatment and he also overcome covid at xmas! He had 5 spots on his liver he was scheduled for surgery to burn the tumors bout 1 month ago now, when they went into do the surgery there were no spots visable great news. He is now awaiting his rectal surgery to remove the tumor, the surgeon told him 2 weeks ago he would need a permanent bag and he would need to see a plastic surgeon, it was alot of info to get his head around at the time. Since that he a scope last week and they were very happy with it only a scar left he is having an mri this week because tumor had grown into the muscle, the nurse rang to cancel our app with the plastic surgeon which means bag may not b permanent? Nurse didn't want to commit to answering my questions when asked which i completely understand. my question is is it normal for a surgeon to give you news like he got 2 weeks ago then a week later change of plan?? Is it possible he mite only have a temporary bag or maybe no surgery at all??

My father was diagnosed with Advanced Bowel cancer in January, they think he may have a huge tumour growing for the last 5 to 10 years.He has just finished 5 weeks of Chemo and Radiotherapy. He has suffered many side effects and is on a lot of pain relief. He has no appetite and is loosing a lot of weight. He is very ill. I am going with him tomorrow to meet his Medical Oncologist and this is all still very new for my dad and the rest of us. I want to support him in the best way I can. What sort of questions should we be asking at tomorrows appointment?

Thanks in advance to anyone who can help me here, I really do appreciate it. If TMI follows I apologise in advance. This past year Ive been experiencing severe pain in my right groin area which bores through to my lower back. The pain radiates down my leg and up into my collarbone and arm into my fingers. I suffer badly with thyroid and thought this may be the reason for a lot of my symptoms and issues. Unfortunately, in November I passed alot of blood through my back passage and my doctor referred me for an urgent colonoscopy which I underwent in the latter end of December. I underwent an endoscopy and colonscopy under twilight sedation. I have no recollection of the endoscopy but the colonscopy is quite vivid, it went on for over two hours. Apparently I hadn't completely evacuated my bowel and my ascending colon could not be examined. The gastroenterologist located ten polyps on my colon which they removed one in particular I could see they attached two clamps, it appeared to be larger than the others and bleeding alot. Two biopsies of my rectum were taken, two from my stomach and the polyps that were removed. The doctor said that she would make an appointment to investigate the remainder of my bowel in 3 months time and will see me every 6 months thereafter. Unfortunately I didn't get to speak with anyone after the colonscopy and I can't get through to the hospital. My GP received notification that the biopsies were taken and they mentioned histology. I haven't received any results yet and have been doing alot of research and I'm beyond worried at this point. In the colonscopy I could see on the monitor the polyps that were found were flat. My bowel has been causing me a great deal of pain and I am extremely constipated. It feels like there is some sort of blockage as my stools are dry whenever I manage to pass which is very little. My weight dropped by 6lb when I managed to have a movement last week. The pain has become more frequent and intense, my GP has given me pain meds to manage this. I am also on PPI daily. I've cut out all red meat, gluten, sweetners etc. out of my diet. Prior to this my diet was very good. Im fit but not as much as I would like because I suffer with extreme fatigue and dizziness. I have the worst brain fog too & I get extremely & uncomfortably bloated.My bowel movements unaided are probably once every two weeks and I never feel like I completely empty my bowel. My GP has requested that the 2nd part of the colonscopy be escalated and is also going to organise a CT scan whilst I wait for the next appointment. I did ask the doctor when I was undergoing the colonscopy to see me sooner and she said that my bowel had been through enough and I had to rest it. Unfortunately I can't switch off my mind and with the pain I'm seriously worrying as I been waiting for two months for my results. I would appreciate if someone can help or share their experiences with me as I am the first in my family to have bowel polyps and every story I read about them so far really gives me cause for concern.

Hi All, My Mam (62, fit and healthy otherwise) has just been diagnosed with stage 4 Bowel cancer. It was present in one lymph node and it is present in the liver also (we are not sure to what extent at this stage). She has had the tumour removed and has to wait 5 weeks before starting chemo (to recover from surgery first). They are going to try to shrink tumour in liver before removing. We are beyond devastated - as im sure everyone is fighting this disease. Anyway I'd love to know of some positive stories of recovery etc in relation to bowel cancer, stage 4 if possible Please I just really need some hope xx

Hi All. My partner had a 6 hour bowel cancer Operation on Nov 12th 2020. The surgical team were able to remove the tumour successfully and all post Op biopsies came back clear. He does not require Chemo or Radiography. It took 2 months to find a stoma bag that worked for Michael. The stoma bag fills up fairly quickly even though Michael has been taken Imodium for over 2 months now. He is not getting any sleep as he is terrified the stoma bag will overflow and burst. He is also very hoarse since coming out of hospital. It may be because he was ventilated for 6 hours during surgery or it may be because he was tubed twice post Op as a result of the Stoma Bag not working initially in hospital. Has anyone else experienced this. We have been told that it will settle in time .3 months later and Michael has no energy from lack of sleep. Any advice on how to boost his energy levels or how to reduce the stoma bag filling up so quickly would be grateful. I wish you all every success on your road to recovery.

Hi, sorry to ask but a family member has been diagnosed with stage 4 bowel and liver cancer, we have been advised its incurable but can be controlled with chemo every 10 days or so . hes only in his 50s and has no other health complications . His doctor is positive but has anyone ever been through this stage ? Many thanks

I am presently recovering from rectal cancer surgery December 2017 and had an ileostomy reversal in April 2018. As my bowel motions are still quite erratic I would like to connect with others who have had an ileostomy reversal experience to ascertain perhaps how long it took for the bowel motions to settle or what their experience has been. Thank you.

If you or someone in your life has been affected by bowel cancer and are interested in sharing your story, consider becoming a media volunteer with the Irish Cancer Society. Sharing your story can help to raise cancer awareness, inform people about our services, appeal for volunteers, and bring reassurance to cancer patients and their families. After you express an interest in becoming a media volunteer, we would discuss with you how best to share your story, getting your permission before publishing or broadcasting.

What is Lynch Syndrome? (Thanks to Sir John Burn Lynch Syndrome UK Conference 2015) We all inherit our DNA 50% from each parent. If we have LS then one of our repair genes is good while the other one is faulty. Think of the repair genes as two Doormen on the door at a night club. Nothing is going to get past them that shouldn’t. This is a person without LS Imagine one of the Doormen needs the toilet and walks off. We still have one doorman watching and keeping us safe. This is a person with LS Imagine the other doorman now needs to toilet and leaves. Nobody is now watching door. This is what happens when one good gene goes faulty for what ever reason. Anybody can just walk in now In brief, we only have one repair gene looking out for us and if it gets damaged in a cell we are left with no protection. See Lynch Syndrome Ireland Web Site + Facebook Page + Twitter

Hi My mum recently diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer. We want to bring her home once she's done with hospital. Has any other teacher been in this position of caring for a parent and what did you do about getting leave from work?