Diagnosis from an endoscopy

Hi Jd37 I’ll be perfectly honestly and say that I was told that they were 99% sure it was cancer. The biopsy will confirm it 100% but the consultants do this day in day out and are usually pretty sure about what they’re seeing. The CT and MRI will check if there is spread to other organs and once all the results are back then they will meet and decide on a treatment plan for your husband.

Bowel cancer is notoriously slow growing but very treatable and the size of the tumour is not an indication of severity. You’ve had a great reply on your other post about telling your children - I was told at my first meeting that they were ‘treating me with a view to cure’ which I was able to tell family which was reassuring - this was 8 years ago. 

This ‘limbo’ time is very stressful but once there is a treatment plan in place then things will honestly feel a bit better. I’ve attached a link to a good booklet that I was given at my first meeting which helps with terminology, treatment etc. 

https://bowelcancerorguk.s3.amazonaws.com/Publications/Bowel_Cancer_UK_Your_Pathway_V10.pdf

The next few months will be tough but I’m glad you’ve reached out and we’ll be happy to help and support you both through this

Take care

Karen x

Thank you so much, I do appreciate you taking the time to reply. Thank you also for the information- I will have a look at it. 
We have had so much bad news to cope with in the last six weeks that this just feels like a step too far at the moment but we will deal with it. The not knowing is so hard, as you say, once we know what we are dealing with we will get on and do it!

Hi Jd37, 

To echo what Karen said I had an enteroscopy (small bowel cancer) and I was told straight after that it was malignant. They do enough of these to know what these things look like so I would prepare yourself but also be positive, it's one of the better cancers to get and the treatment is all bearable.

Please post if you do have any questions. There is a wealth of experience here and I find it really helpful when I have questions. 

Thank you so much for your response. My husband now has a date for his CT so things are moving. The waiting is, as everyone says, the hardest bit. 

Hi Bren,

I am having an MRI of the small bowel on Thursday. I know it’s not going to be good news. My symptoms were very vague. Rapid weight loss and anemic just suddenly. May I ask what yours were. Apparently it is quite rare. This has come out of the blue for me. 

Hi Linda, 

The only symptom I had for ages was anaemia, I had a negative fit test and an endoscopy didn't show anything I had also had a clear colonscopy the previous year. I had some stomach pains (but not severe enough to think it was cancer) and I eventually started to lose weight but that was a few months after being anaemic for a while. 

Mine was picked up on an mri which led to a ct and the endoscopy.

Apparently it is quite rare, I had the tumour removed last year and I am currently having chemotherapy. 

Please do post or message me if you have any questions and I hope the MRI goes well.

Brenda

Thank you I am beating myself up thinking I have missed something. I also have a mass on my chest and apparent cysts on my liver. I have always had IBS but now feel I have let myself down.

Don't beat yourself up Linda, I have a genetic condition that predisposed me to bowel cancers and I still didn't think my symptoms were cancer. I thought IBS or some disorder but not cancer. 

You are in the beat hands now to get your treatment started.

Hi

my husband was diagnosed straight after a colonoscopy where they couldn’t get through any further in to the bowel because of the tumour. They told us they are 95% sure it’s cancer and we need CT scans to see if spread and check the rest of the bowel. 
im worried sick of spread and whether there is treatment.

they said it was a large lesion partially blocking the bowel so that scared me that as it’s large it must have spread.

sending you and your husband best wishes x