Pain before treatment

Hi Tac25,

Welcome to the forum. Sorry you've had to join us here! But you've come to the right place as there's a lot of advice and support to be found from people who have been through or are going through treatment for AC. 

I am part way through my treatment for stage 3, currently in my third week of chemoradiation therapy. I have been experiencing pain and discomfort for many months, at times excruciating, especially during the night. Not everyone has this pre treatment, but those that do often report significant improvement in pain levels fairly quickly once radiotherapy starts. This has been the case for me, thankfully! The first 2 weeks were pretty tough and I was reduced to tears a few times, but I also had a water infection which was adding to the pain. 

The radiotherapy team were great in getting my pain management under control. I have been on slow release morphine twice daily, with Oramorph to top up as needed, plus paracetamol/Ibuprofen. I also have a steroid cream and cooling gel with lidocaine that helps too. I would speak to your team if the pain is becoming too much, don't let yourself suffer. I was having to take top up pain meds every couple of hours until only last week, but gradually I'm needing less and less :) I understand your worry about stronger meds interfering with your work, but you won't necessarily be so 'out of it' that you can't function. The pain itself may cause more difficulty with this if you are unable to get on top of it.

Pre treatment, I also found a hot water bottle on my lower back was soothing, but you mustn't use heat once treatment starts. 

So now my next worry is the soreness that is starting to creep in down there... but I'm using the creams and taking good care of myself. It may be that I need to increase the meds again at some point to cope with it, but it's all a day at a time really. 

My treatment actually finishes the day yours begins! I will keep an eye out to see how you're getting on. Ask anything on here, as there is always someone with some experience to share. Have a read through previous posts too, as it will help you prepare for what's ahead. It's certainly helped me. 

Good luck going forward,

Jenna xx

P.S I also had the pain extending down the back of my legs, but that too has eased over the past few days. Hang in there, things will get better xx

Hi Tac25,

I’m so sorry about your diagnosis and that you are experiencing increased pain.

The time between getting a diagnosis and starting treatment is a really difficult one in terms of getting advice on managing symptoms. 
I too had T2 and completed treatment in November.

 I had pain prior to treatment, so in answer to your question, I do think it’s fairly normal. I was also working and understand your reluctance to take anything that might affect your functioning. 

As the pain is affecting your sleep, you might want to consider taking something extra just at night, like dihydrocodeine. It’s hard to function at work when you’re unable to sleep. Your GP should be able to suggest something if you don’t yet have a team to contact. 

I hope you can access some help. X

Hello TAC25

A warm welcome to the forum although I am sorry to hear of your diagnosis.  2nd July isn't long to wait now, I know there is such a lot going on in the early days with scans and appointments but now you have something concrete on the horizon.  Once treatment starts we always suggest getting a calendar and marking off the days - it is surprising how quickly time passes when undergoing treatment and hopefully looking forward to a cancer-free future.  Although the treatment is tough, the chemo/radiotherapy is known to be a really effective treatment for anal cancer. 

You have had some good suggestions from our lovely forum members.  I had no symptoms at all apart from skinny poos so I can't help there, but keep in close contact with your treating team for pain relief , creams and potions all the way through your treatment.  And invest in a Sitzbath - bliss for dunking your nether regions in luke-warm water towards the end of treatment.

We are here to support should you want it, please remember nothing is off-limits on here - you are safe and amongst virtual friends. 

Irene xx 

Hi TAC25 ,

Another warm welcome from me to our little corner of the MacMillan Online Community although I’m really sorry to hear of your recent diagnosis. I didn’t personally have any pain but I see you’ve had some great replies already & hopefully those have offered you some reassurance. I do know that a few people that have had larger tumours have reported that when treatment begins they’ve experienced noticeable shrinkage pretty quickly. 

Hopefully the next couple of weeks will pass quickly for you & wishing you well with the start of your treatment. 

Please come back with any questions you might have or if you just need to offload or have a chat with a bunch of people that really do know what you’re going through. 

Nicola