Long way to travel

FormerMember over 5 years ago

3 replies
124 subscribers
2059 views

Hello everyone.

this is my first post. I was first diagnosed with colon cancer January 2018 after a perforated bowel. 20 plus years with ulcerative colitis the symptom are the same and at 41 no one suspected anything.

so far I’ve had two surgeries, ileostomy 6 months of chemo and 26 cycles of radiotherapy and I still haven’t had the all clear. I was due to have a third op in August to remove the rectal stump but this was postponed as the pet scan picked up 2 abnormalities believing this to be peritoneal disease my doctor referred my results down to the specialist hospital in Basingstoke to see if I’m suitable for the hot chemo during surgery..

The reason for my post today is to ask you lovely people if you have had similar experiences? What exactly the hot chemo bath is ?and also travelling to Basingstoke 300plus miles in my case is there any help / funding I can get towards the travel costs.

Many thanks

court over 5 years ago

Welcome to the forum . So glad you joined in .

Did your oncologist mention HIPEC surgery ? I think they basically remove tumour deposits but whilst they are in add heated chemo locally within the abdomen . Giving it the benefit of direct application and heat to kill off affected cells. There has been a lot of people with this treatment but might not be around just now . You could also link in with Bowelcancer UK ‘s forum as it’s mentioned in there too .

Our staff at the Macmillan helpline would be more than happy to chat through the financial side and see what grants may be available to you . Their number is 0808 808 0000 . They are open till ten in the evenings .

Sorry you have more to endure . My mum had a few bumps along the way too and required to dig deep but she got there in the end and living well ten years later . The centres of excellence are well worth the travel if not a little exhausting but the expertise is incredible.

take care,

Court

Helpline Number 0808 808 0000

FormerMember over 5 years ago

Hello JameyJS

Really sorry to hear you have been through the mill!

I'm having hipec surgery next week at Christie's. Christie's & Basingstoke are the only hospitals in the UK that do this procedure. I know it can be a mither with the travel but it will be worth it.

After the tumour etc has been removed the hot chemotherapy solution is applied straight to the area of disease. I believe it takes about 90 minutes and the entire procedure complete with surgery can take 12 hours or so, so it's a big one. But the idea is that they chemotherapy solution is heated to a certain point so to kill the cancer cells but not the healthy ones.

I'm 36 and you 41 so in the same age group so you might be able to have it, so if it's an option for you I would definitely have it.

Hope everything works out for you and if you can have it, let me know and I'll tell you what's it like!

All the best

FormerMember over 5 years ago in reply to FormerMember

Hello M.

So after visiting Basingstoke it was decided that the HIPEC surgery wasn’t the way to go for me at the moment. They are not ruling it out but feel the 10 hour surgery may be to much for me.

After seeing my oncologist yesterday for a chat I am starting another round of chemo mid November with the hope the tumour responds well so keeping everything crossed .

Good luck with your surgery next week and for a good recovery.

Best wishes