So worried

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Dear all,

My partner has been diagnosed with bowel cancer, he has had a colonoscopy and a CT scan. We have an appointment with the consultant on Monday. He only had the CT scan on Thursday and during the during the phone call today the nurse was quite insistent that he brings someone with him, must remain on a low fibre diet and that they would go through the options. Does this suggest that this is really bad news? Are appointments usually this quick or is this only when it's the worst news? Sorry I am just so worried. 

  • Hi  and a warm welcome to the board. Yes this is a stressful time but once you have a treatment plan in place then things will honestly feel a bit better. 

    The fact that the appointment has come through so quickly could purely be due to timings? They may try to do all consultations on Mondays, the consultant might be on holiday in the near future so wants to see your hubby before then? I’ve just had a look back at my timeline in 2016 and I had the colonoscopy on 22/7, scans on 3/8, mri on 8/8 and saw the consultant on 9/8. 

    They always suggest that someone comes with you as there can be a lot of information to take in and I was like a rabbit caught in the headlights. Take a pen and paper so you can jot down a few notes and any questions that you might have. I’ve attached a link to a booklet that I was given at my first appointment which might give you a heads up?

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

    A low residue diet is recommended as it is gentle on the bowel rather than a high fibre diet which can be a bit rough! There’s some ideas in the link below but it’s basically beige!

     Low Residue Diet 

    Please let us know how the meeting goes and we’ll be happy to help and support you both through this

    Take care

    Karen x

    ps stay away from google - it can be scary and out of date. If you click on people names then their profile page may show their treatment to date and you can ask anything you like - nothing too daft or embarrassing on here 

    Macmillan Support Line - 0808 808 00 00, 7 days a week between 8am-8pm
  • Hey. 
    When my dad was diagnosed, they said with a cancer diagnosis they ALWAYS ask to bring someone with you, they told us the more ears in the room the better, lots of information to take in. 
    The fact the appointment is soon, doesnt mean it is bad news, its just what they do , all depends what days MDT meetings are on. 
    I know its hard, but will get easier once youve been given a proper diagnosis and treatment plan. 
    hope everything goes well at his appointment x

  • Thank you so much for your kind reply. 

  • Thanks so much for the advice and kind words.