I posted a while ago about my fast track and feeling overwhelmed but it’s still carrying on and I am done in
End of June went to dr got 2 wk referral in . Beginning of July had bloods done and colonoscopy and biopsies taken. 3 rd July ... mri 14 th July . 25 th July they rang said not enough biopsies even though highly suspicious polyp. Finally 7 th August more biopsies taken they put that through quicker and then they asked for ct which I had yesterday as they are looking for spread now etc . I see Consultant next Tuesday 27th it seems to have taken for ever and my head is all over the place. Initial bloods taken were all satisfactory and mri showed localised focal thickening . I know it’s a cancerous polyp 2.5 cm as they have pretty much said that when I had 2 nd biopsies taken but I just feel I’ve been left so long and it’s spreading all the time !!! Is this normal ? If really bad would I have been told?? Someone said im Just a case of many and have to wait my turn which just makes me feel so awful. Thanks for listening
Hi
I'm so sorry to hear how you feel at the moment. I have not had this type of cancer but I can fully understand how waiting for tests and results can make you feel.
I can't answer your questions but noticed that your post had gone unanswered. This could be simply because it has slipped off the first page before anyone with the right experience has seen it. By replying to you it will bump it back to the top of the first page.
I'm also tagging this group's Community Champions and Nikki65 into my reply because they'll probably be able to share their experiences with you.
When you have a minute it would be really useful if could pop something about your journey so far into your profile as it helps others when answering or looking for someone with a similar diagnosis. It also means that you don't have to keep repeating yourself. To do this click on your username and then select 'Edit Profile'. You can amend it at any time and if you're not sure what to write you can take a look at mine by clicking on my username.
x
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
Waiting is definitely horrible but hopefully you'll feel more positive once you've had a chat with the consultant on Tuesday and you know what is being planned.
x
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
Hi ,
Sorry I missed your post & I'm sorry you’re going through this right now. Rest assured what you’re feeling is perfectly normal, when we’re given the news that we have cancer that word alone is enough to send you into a tailspin! I convinced myself it had spread & the pain I had in my hip meant it’d gone to my bones! Following a conversation with my GP & her kindly ordering me an X-ray it was confirmed I had early signs of osteoarthritis in my hip not spread from my cancer, so we all completely understand how you’re feeling.
At diagnosis my only outward sign was also what the Drs described as a polyp & what they thought was an internal ulcer. I had a biopsy & got my diagnosis within 7 days. Once the diagnosis was made things moved quickly onto MRI & CT scans to check for spread etc. My tumour was approximately 2cm & localised, I had no nodal involvement or spread. My diagnosis, as with a large number of anal cancers, was a squamous cell carcinoma & these cancers are renowned for being slow growing therefore although some nodal involvement isn’t uncommon spread to other organs is only usually found in far more advanced cases.
There are also pretty strict time guidelines for cancer diagnosis, tests & treatment to be completed within & although it probably feels like forever am I right in thinking it’s been 2 months since you first visited you Dr? I first visited my GP with concerns about this ‘polyp’ mid January 2018, was diagnosed mid February, had surgery in March & began a reduced course of chemoradiotherapy mid June 2018 so that gives you an idea of my timeline to gauge against your own.
I hope this puts your mind at rest if only a little & you get some definitive answers on Tuesday. Let us know how it goes.
Nicola
Hi ,
When my first scan results were reviewed although my tumour measured around 2cm in diameter & the Dr could feel it on examination it was undetectable on both the MRI & CT, it was apparently only 2mm deep & had been caught pretty early (T1) taking all of this into consideration my surgeon said I’d qualify for a local resection to remove the tumour which if successful would offer me my cure, only 6/100 are caught early enough to be surgically removed. When the histology came back following my surgery there was a 4mm clearance around the majority of the tumour but a small area that only had 1mm clearance therefore I was offered the reduced course of chemoradiotherapy as mop-up treatment.
I’m now 14 months post treatment & in remission, I’ve had my yearly MRI & CT scans that were both clear & life is pretty much back to normal. I returned to work 5-6 weeks after completing my treatment & have just returned from a lovely holiday with my daughter in Rome. All of this seemed inconceivable in the very beginning, when I was where you are now & I thought life would never be the same again. This does change you as a person but as you’ll see from the many of us on this forum that are in remission & those that have been cured & discharged that life does go on.
Nicola x
