Question for anyone who has had bowel surgery

[Duck on Wheels]

Oh Good Grief! The US needs to get a national health system! Everybody's insured. It costs LESS than what you folks are paying now. And that nonsense about "choice"? Don't make me, well, I'd say laugh, but it ain't funny. Not in this situation, it ain't.

But as for recovering from surgery ... The big issue is the incision. As somebody up above said, if they can do the surgery laparoscopically (so-called "keyhole" surgery) then that doesn't take long. If it's an incision from breast bone to pubic bone, then it takes some weeks, even months of training to get back to where you can stand up straight, walk as fast as before, and then a bit more to build up the core strength for a long bike ride. But that said ... I no longer remember how long it took. I only intellectually recall the pain involved. The sensory memories are now long gone. Of course, your recovery time may also be affected by additional treatments. After the surgery they may want you to do some radiation or chemo therapy to catch any stray cells. But you'll cross that bridge if it gets erected in front of you.

Keeping fingers crossed for you. Remission rates (i.e. cure rates) are good for bowel cancer. Let's hope you're with the majority on this one and do just fine once you've found your surgeon.

[tprevost]

Pam,

I've been off the boards lately and Tiffanie brought this to my attention. I am so bummed to hear about what you are going through. My thoughts and prayers are with you ... and please, you have all my numbers, if you need anything at all, please let me know.

Tracy

[caligurl]

GAWD how i HATE insurance companies!

[Trekhawk]

Pam - that is terrible news. I hope you find a Doctor soon and get on the way to recovery.

Sending positive vibes your way.

[bcipam]

Something more positive - and thanks all for "talking" with me and directing me through this... I have found 3 doctors in my area that are Board certified and work through good hospitals (so I figure they must be OK or the hosptial would provoke privileges). Will be calling the attending physician today to see if their office will help me contact and select a doctor. How scary not knowing the doctor before having the surgery. Talk about an act of faith!!! I'm also going to make an appointment with the Attending and ask him to provide more details about my diagnosis and pronosis. Hopefully after the CT Scan today he will have a complete picture of my disease and how it can be treated.

A good friend called last night who happens to do cancer research of all things, and talked to me for some time about the disease, how its treated, etc. The prognosis looks very good and I'm much more positive today than yesterday.

BTW a note to all those out there who take having a life partner for granted... it's times like this it would be so much easier to get through the down times if someone I loved could just give me a big hug and say "I'll be with you through this..." You can't imagine how alone at times I feel even though I am very blessed to have loving and caring friends and family. My Faith is also a pillar for me right now. But it would sure be nice to have that love one close by.

Take good care of those DH's and BF's and of yourselfs. My best friend's mom just had a stroke. She is 5 years older than me. Turns out she hadn't been to a doctor since the birth of her last child (38 years ago!!!). She has uncontrol diabetes and the stroke was related. If she went to a doctor on a regular basis this never would have happened. AND if I had the screening test when my GP doctor first started bullying me to do it, I wouldn't be in this situation. Get those Mammograms and colon screenings when you are supposed to. Don't be stupid like me!!!!

[Trekhawk]

Pam - glad to hear you are getting the Doctor situation sorted. Thank you for reminding us not to take our partners for granted. Im so pleased to hear you have close friends and family that can be there for you.

Please keep us updated on how things are going.

Sending Hugs

Leslie

[KnottedYet]

(((((((big hug))))))))

We'll be with you through this!

[KnottedYet]

These gals are great, and are great sources of support and info. I can't speak highly enough of the value I place on the women I've met and the support and comraderie I've felt with Team Survivor.

www.teamsurvivor.org

If you have 5 minutes, just find your local Team Survivor (there are at least 4 in California) and drop them a quick line. Tell them what is up with you and ask for info and help. Many Teams also have message boards.

KnottedYet (Not Dead Yet.... get it?)

[Dogmama]

How scary not knowing the doctor before having the surgery.

My husband was dx'd with colon cancer on Dec. 30, 2003 and had emergency surgery Dec 31 with the first available surgeon. Yes, very scarey. This guy turned out to be top notch and highly respected. So, we never know what will be put in our paths.

[bcipam]

Can I ask how your husband is now doing? Was the overall experience for him OK? What was his disability period like?

I do have an appointment next week to meet again with the attending physician to ask all my questions. The following week with the surgeon. I guess my surgery will be by the first week in October. Doesn't appear to be any hurry on the doctor's parts. Next day surgery - now that's scary! I pray everything was and is now OK.

[emily_in_nc]

Pam,

You will be in my thoughts. My husband's best friend is battling colorectal cancer (in his 40s - so young!!) that wasn't found until it was stage four (he put off screening due to insurance issues, which is very maddening!!), and yes, it has metastasized. It is the worst possible type of this cancer, and we are all very scared for him, but he has an amazing spirit and goes into each round of chemo, radiation, etc. with the most positive attitude. If anyone can beat it, he can. And you will too! Lean on us here - we can be a virtual support group.

Glad you've found some possible doctors and hope you can get the surgery behind you soon and start recovering and living again. Your bike will wait patiently until you are able to ride again - and you will. We hiked with our friend this spring, and he was amazing - never tired at all!

Sending you lots of hope,

Emily

[Dogmama]

Can I ask how your husband is now doing? Was the overall experience for him OK? What was his disability period like?

He is doing great. It had metastisized and he had his spleen, part of pancreas and some lymph nodes removed. He also was overweight, smoked, etc., and was the worst candidate for surgery. He did have complications. A lot of them were due to his horrible lifestyle going into surgery. He did chemo for six months. Since then, he has been cancer free. He gets blood checked every three months and a CT scan once a year. His oncologist said that 90% of these come back in three years and we are four months away. Oh, and he had another colonoscopy one year post surgery.

My recommendations are that you be sure you are well hydrated before surgery. It will make finding veins much easier. Get your nutrition right and keep up your exercise. Post surgery, get up & walk as soon as you can to minimize the chances of blood clot formation.

There have been studies showing that red meat, anything with nitrates (e.g., lunch meat, hot dogs) and anything grilled are carcinogens that lead to colon ca. Also, calcium in the form of carbonate, the cheapest kind, has been shown to help. Attitude and most importantly, prayers, are extremely important. I hope you will let everybody know when you are going in for surgery. I believe the power of prayer and energy is invaluable. His oncologist is still amazed at his progress.

Also, try to not listen to all the people who will tell you horror stories. I got so tired of people telling me about their friends & relatives who had bad outcomes. Everybody is different and you have a huge advantage because you are healthy.

BTW, he doesn't smoke anymore, started riding a bike (think Pee Wee Herman, but still...) and works out in a gym which is amazing for him. I told him if he ever picked up another cigarette, he'd need a colonoscopy to extract the pack.

Again, he was NOT in good shape when he went in. His bowel was almost completely blocked, thus emergency surgery. He had been ignoring symptoms for a long time. This doesn't sound like you at all. I'm assuming that the PET scan showed the ca was localized to the colon, correct?