Hi all, I'm currently going through chemoradiotherapy for rectal cancer and will then be having surgery. I was initially told this would be APER, but I heard last week the plan is now ELAPE, which from what I have read is an even bigger surgery and would mean I would also lose pelvic floor muscle (amongst other things), with implications for future bladder and sexual function, and needing reconstructive surgery, plus taking healthy tissue from somewhere else to fill the bigger 'hole' inside (so more scars etc) - generally a longer/harder recovery (up to a year?), and it's not like the initial one sounded like a walk in the park! The problem is I'm still under oncology so can't yet discuss with a surgeon until I'm referred on to the colorectal team, and patience has never been my strong suit! Initially I had just been going to take each stage at a time but I'm not very good at dealing with uncertainty and this change to what I thought was the next stage has really thrown me. I'm worried about what my quality of life will be like after it. I'm not really sure what I am asking - have I got the right end of the stick in what I have read? Any experiences/thoughts from folks here? Thank you
