Looking after my hubby with colon cancer after surgery

1 minute read time.

Hi,I'm Ticcy and this April ,the day before me,hubby and our two young children ( 8 & 10)  were headed for Dubai to celebrate my 40th birthday,my husband found out he had something bad in his colon.This came as a huge shock to us.

The holiday we had to cancel and the worse news was yet to come. He had colon cancer stage 4.He is only 41 and lives a healthy lifestyle,has never smoked,does'nt drink,exercises and takes no risks.Ideal man! does'nt even like football!

Since then hubby has had surgery to remove the tumour,which was large and had part of his colon removed.He recovered from the op remarkably well and stayed positive throughout. The operation was a success and all the tumour was removed but it had broken through the bowel wall and had spread to lymph nodes.Also it was classed as poorly differentiated,which means its a bizzare and the aggressive type. This is worrying as it means it is likely to return and may not respond to chemo.

J had started his chemo at last after numerous downs,first an infection ,then a blood clot when the picc line was put in.Now I have to administer a daily injection to prevent blood clots.He was disappointed as he wanted the picc line in.He has to go on tablet form chemo and a 2 hr drip. Xeloda and Oxaliplatin.So far he has only done just over a week and he is so poorly.Lost half a stone,only 11 stone to start with. Stomach ache and diahorrea and general unwell feeling.His positiveness seems to have disappeared .I'm scared he wont cope with the chemo ,as there are still 6 months to go.This is only the beginning.I'm not sure what to do,sometimes I'm treating him like a baby ,over fussing and the next I feel angry.

I'd like to hear from anyone on the same chemo and how it affects them or people who are beating bowel cancer and any tips x

 

Anonymous
  • FormerMember
    FormerMember

    Hi Ticcy

    What you are going through at the moment is mental confusion. You dont know what to think what to feel what your supposed to do. This is the way Cancer effects the Carer in this case you.

    Your Husband J is going through the same feelings

    as you. This is where you have  got to be strong,

    Caring,Loving, and Understanding. All the things that J needs at this time. The worst feeling a Cancer

    Patient can feel is the thought of being alone. He will

    lose all his strength,and being positive he needs to

    fight this terrible disease.

    I have been doing it now for 12 yrs on and off. I was given no more than 3 yrs to live.But Iam still here in remission, thanks to the help of my Family and all my Friends on this site. I still have the strength and Love to keep going,and I will.

    All the best to J and your Family stay close to eachother and you too can  beat this C**p.

    Take care and be safe Big Hugs Love Sarsfield.xxx

  • Hi Ticcy,

    I am stage 4 colon cancer and nearly at the same stage of treatment as your husband. I was diagnosed last October, had chemo radiation Nov to Jan, surgery March (colon resection,hysterectomy and temp.ileostomy) and had liver resection 2 weeks ago - so in terms of chemo am slightly behind your husband as chemo is my next treatment.

    I do feel for you as being a carer must me really tough and in some ways you probably feel helpless but you are not. I have had had a bad week and lost my positivity for a while as I felt overtaken by the illness and all it's impplications but seeing my husband willing me on and so involved in my daily progress has lifted me so much that I don't feel quite so bad at this point.

    If you have a good network of friends/family try to engineer some time for yourself - you are important too don't forget!.It's the little things that help me  - a stroke of my head, a gentle kiss on the forehead or just holding my hand for a while help me feel cared for when I am at my lowest.

    You must have your work cut out with two young children to care for so take all the help that you can. When I start my chemo we can compare notes. but meanwhile keep going I am sure it will be worth it long term and in terms of worrying that your husband has lost his positive outlook I am sure it will return. If you talk to other people on this site I am sure they will all say that they have all been through times like this at some point as it is part of the horrible cancer package.

    Sending you my love and hope to talk with you again.

    Cathie xx

  • FormerMember
    FormerMember

    Many thanks for the replies,they are much appreciated.

    Best wishes and love to you also x

  • FormerMember
    FormerMember

    Hi Ticcy

    I was diagnosed with colon cancer June 2009 and had a high anterior resection (12" of colon removed) and radical hysterectomy. Two months after surgery I started 6 months of Xeloda (Capecitabine) and Oxaliplatin which finished February 2010. Along with the chemo I took 3 different tablets for nausea/sickness, Domperidone was one but I can't remember the other two. I was troubled with diarrheoa and heartburn and was prescribed medication to help. At the start of my chemo I was told to contact the cancer centre if I had any side effects. Do you have a contact number to ring for advice? Your husband doesn't need to suffer in silence, there's a whole variety of medication that can be prescribed to help with the side effects. My tumour was described as massive by the consultant but was successfully removed with surgery. It was classed as Dukes C (spread to lymph nodes). Please PM me if you want any help/advice.

    Angela xx

  • FormerMember
    FormerMember

    Thankyou for your reply.It's great news to hear that you have finished your chemo with a positive result.Just the inspiration we need at this time.

    We have the contact numbers and will use them.J seems to be getting diarrheoa mostly, but he may need to have his dosage lowered.He is on the same tablets you mentioned.

    Best wishes for the future x