Just diagnose, possible spread to liver, agonising wait

Hi Star74and welcome to the board. Yes these first few days/weeks waiting for scans and results are very stressful but once you have a treatment plan in place then things will feel a bit better. They have said its operable which is a good sign so hold on to that comment. I also had to have an MRI as something had picked up on my liver. It was a harmless cyst called a haemangioma -apparently it is quite common for people to have them from birth and be non the wiser unless they have a scan at some point in their life. Even if you are stage 4 there are still a lot of treatments available. 

Please try and distract yourself until you know exactly where you stand and what your treatment will be. I know it’s hard not to worry but Bowel Cancer is very treatable - I was diagnosed as stage 3 and will be coming up to my 4 year clear anniversary at the end of this month. 

Stay away from google and ask anything you want on here

Take care

Karen x

Thank you Karen, much appreciated and it's so good to hear your positive story which gives me hope.  I'm so scared they are going to say it's terminal and my mind is working overtime with all the things I need to do.  I lost my Mum a year ago to throat cancer and I'm still grieving.  

I'm trying to stay positive but it's hard.  Thanks again for the reply and I sincerely wish you all the best.

Michelle x

Hi Michelle, 

We are just a few weeks ahead of you, my husband has just been diagnosed, after the scans etc. The wait and the anxiety is by far the worst part, not knowing plays with your mind too. The advice I had from this lovely group is that once you know the plan you will feel less anxiety. They were spot on, as my husbands plan is coming together the anxiety is lifting. The people on here talk from their own experiences, and are all rooting for you, just keep popping on and asking, it's been a great source of comfort to us as we navigate this journey.

One of the things we've learned from this forum is there is hope, and treatments have improved ten fold. Another advice to us was stay off Google, the information there is often outdated, and inaccurate. 

I hope Court will pop on soon, her Mum's story has filled us with hope, it's truly inspiration.

I wish you all the very best, 

Love Frances x

Thank you Frances, I really hope your husband's outcome is good.  Unfortunately I have scanned Google and it's terrifying, I'm so glad I came across this site.  The wait is just awful and I think as you say I will feel better when I have the plan on Tuesday.  It's just such a shock and had to take in.

Best wishes to you and your family.

Michelle. X

Hi Star74

Welcome to the forum from me too !

Totally agree with Karen that the liver could be benign . Lots of people pass through here and that’s the case . Most of us do not have scans so really done know what cysts we have inside . My mum was quite taken aback at some of the stuff on her ct scans but whilst they looked bad they were in fact fine and have been showing up for the last ten years !

One solitary liver met would still have many treatment options from surgery to Radio frequency ablation .

It takes time to censor your use of google initially. You try hard not to and off you go. Stick to a few selected sites with up to date information . Bowel cancer is one of the few primaries that has more treatment options in the liver . It took me a while to work that out and had to separate stats from other types of cancer out of the equation . It also took me a few weeks to check the date on the sites . Five years is a long time the world of cancer and practice has changed quite a bit . 

My mum has been a stage 4 patient for 11 and a 1/2 years ( 1/ 2 matters) ! She lives a good life despite a difficult diagnosis initially. She had to endure the treatment but I am really glad she did . If you click on my user name you can read her story . Again not a direct comparison as she had a liver like a fruit bowel with tumours initially. She is in hiding from corona now as she is keen to have a good summer next year ! 

Going straight to chemo is a good plan ! 

Take care ,

Court 

Hi Court, thank you so much for replying, I was hoping you would as I've read some of your posts and you are so reassuring and uplifting.  It's just such a shock and hard to process, I'm hoping I will feel better on Tuesday when I find out exactly where it is and have a plan of action, the anxiety this week is awful but I consider myself luck getting all the tests and results done in one week.  Plus, I was supposed to be having the procedure done in Feb as that's the earliest I could get as the Dr said it was piles!

Best wishes to your Mum and the work you do on here is fantastic and so helpful.

Michelle

Hi Star74

For us the worst stage was the part you are facing just now . The anxiety was crushing . But it got much better once all the information was gathered and a good plan in place .

The scans are so sophisticated now but they do bring so much anxiety with them . When the oncologist pops them up on the screen I still drop my eyes to the ground . I decided I prefer not to see inside her body any more ! On the other hand my mum is very interested and follows intently. However I see them as a necessary evil . They gave us the chance to get her the treatment and keep her well .

My mum has had to go and see so many other specialists over the years over wee things that turned out to be nothing !!

Take care and hope you have a better day . 
Court 

Hi. I am going through something very similar. I gave bn told I gave BC which has spread to my liver. They can’t operate. However tgey r going to try chemo to see if they can shrink etc. 
I found all this out in the last month. I was last at the hospital a week ago but still no date for chemo?it’s making me so anxious. I’m always tired and sometimes can’t get out of bed. 
ive accepted my fate but I’m worried about my wife n kids. I try to act like I’m tough n Tracy to fight. Problem is I’m crapping myself. Not sure what’s ahead?  I’ve always bn the provider and not being to continue that role will kill me quicker than cancer. 

Hi 

Big welcome to the forum . Sorry to hear you are having to go through all this too . 

I honestly thought at the start they needed to whip my mother in and start chemo right away , I felt such urgency but the oncologist explained it had probably been there for a long time and encouraged her to go for a holiday !!!! We managed a few days . 
The chemo itself can be adjusted and they have many options for treating side effects . Bowel cancer itself has a bit of flexibility with chemo options . 
They take such good care of you . 
Are you able to work just now ? 
take care ,

Court