PRECAUTIONARY CHEMO

FormerMember over 3 years ago

4 replies
121 subscribers
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Hi everyone

I had most of my large bowel removed at the end of Feb and then ileorectal anastomosis (in other words, the surgeons managed to join p what remained. I've now been tested for any lingering cancer and apparently tests of a dozen lymph nodes show that they are all clear. I now need to decide whether to have precautionary chemotherapy - a course of capecitabine for three months.

When I saw the oncologist the first time round (they hadn't completed all the tests) I got the impression, reading between the lines, that he was steering me away from chemo. I saw one of his deputies today, after all the results were in, who told me the good news above but also explained that there might be undetectable traces of cancer somewhere.

Having read up the NHS advice and some of the other posts on this forum (and given that I will have whole body CTC scan in the near-ish future which should help complete the picture) I'm inclined not to pursue the chemo at this stage as it's precautionary and given the potential impact on quality of life via side effects. But I'd be grateful for any advice anyone may be able to give.

Bw to you all

William.

Jacquiw10 over 3 years ago

William

I understand completely the decision you have to make! I had Stage 3 Colon Cancer 14 years ago and all the cancer was removed. However I decided to have chemo as I was advised it would ensure there were no stray cancer cells.

It was a difficult decision as I was just beginning to recover then had chemo , which I did find tough. However my view was that I wouldn’t regret having chemo, but I might regret not having it! The oncologist managed the side effects and I got through it!

However, I was diagnosed with stomach cancer, completely unrelated, three years ago. It was very early stage and again there was a debate within the medical team, as to whether I should have chemo before surgery! Again I decided to have it, as it was a ‘gold’ standard treatment but after surgery I decided not to have chemo. My reasons at that point were that the risks to my health outweighed the benefits of chemo! The cancer was very early stage and had been removed - chemo after stomach surgery is difficult to tolerate and I had lost a lot of weight.

So my advice is to get as much information from the medical team - what are the risks of chemo and what are the risks if you don’t have chemo? There won’t be clear answers as my experience is that the medical team will give you information and you have to make the decision!

Hope that’s helpful! Good luck!

Jac

Life is what happens when you are making other plans!

FormerMember over 3 years ago in reply to Jacquiw10

Thanks very much for this account of your experiences. I'm speaking to the oncologist again today so will ask more questions.

And good luck to you too.

William

Living the dream over 3 years ago in reply to FormerMember

Hi William I had Stage 3 Colon Cancer with one lymph node cancerous. I had successful op 2 months ago. However there could be cancer in my system somewhere and was recommended to have 4 sessions (3 months) of chemo. It increases my chances to survive 5 years from 73% to 83-88%. Good luck to you.

Laura

NannyAnny over 3 years ago

Hi William,

My husband had a bowel resection last October. He was only out of hospital for 2 weeks and was readmitted with a bowel obstruction just before Christmas. We had one appointment with the oncology consultant, who was all for the chemo. At the time hubby was having trouble being sick and was obviously not right. He had also lost a lot of weight. I voiced my concerns and was told it was not his department. He did get a nurse to talk about diet to us, but we did not sign up for chemo. After his second visit to hospital the surgical consultant said it was too late for chemo to be effective, and it would only give him another 5% insurance against reoccurrence. He seemed to think the risks of chemo outweighed any advantages. Having watched our daughter go through chemo some years earlier, I really could not stand that again!! So, the matter has been taken out of our hands. We'll deal with anything else if, and when it happens and enjoy life meanwhile!!! Good luck!!!!!