Hello,
Just wanted to make contact. Have been lurking here for some time having previously been on the anal cancer forum. My polyp was so close to the anal verge that my surgeon wasn't sure whether I had anal or rectal cancer. He has now confirmed that I have rectal cancer so I have transferred here.
I am 70 now and first had blood spotting in September 2019. When it continued and increased I eventually went to see my GP on 9th March 2020. She, without examining me, said that I had piles. I put it on a back burner being somewhat diverted by the pandemic and also by the fact that I was diagnosed in September 2020 (after a regular mammogram) with early breast cancer. I had a lumpectomy (with sentinal nodes removed) at the end of October 2020, followed eventually (put off twice) by a second operation to get clear margins in January 2021. Then radiotherapy at the beginning of March 2021.
Having finished that, I thought I would go back to the GP to check out my bleeding that was continuing. My GP (a different one from the first) physically examined me and immediately put me on a two week urgent pathway. She said it felt more like a polyp than piles and that the base felt hard.
Following a colonoscopy where they couldn't see the polyp because it was so far down but could physically feel it, I saw the colorectal surgeon, who was finally able to see it with a proctoscope. He decided to do a biopsy under general anaesthetic and an urgent MRI scan. By this time, even though no-one had said, I knew it was cancerous. After the biopsy also had a CT scan.
About a week later my surgeon said that I had a low rectal adenosarcoma. It was 1.1cm Stage1, T1/T2 N0 M0. Unfortunately, because the biopsy came out in three pieces, the pathologist was unable to say whether a clear margin had been obtained around the tumour. Because of where it was, they would be removing my anus, rectum and part of the sigmoid colon and giving me a permanent stoma!. The reason was that it was so close to the sphincter that removing the section containing the polyp would not leave sufficient of the rectum next to the sphincter to join up. This was pretty shattering news! He assured me that this would be curative but nevertheless I was daunted by the cure.
The following day he phoned me and said he had been thinking about me and decided that this was a huge operation for a small polyp. He was going to propose to do a second biopsy to try and get a clear margin. This was done on 16th June and am now waiting for the results to come back. The surgeon says that if they achieve clear margins, I will be put on to a watch and wait regime with frequent checkups, MRI and CT scans and an annual colonoscopy. If they don't, I will have to have the big operation.
I asked whether, if they don't get clear margins, it would be possible to mop up any stray cancer cells with chemotherapy and radiotherapy. He said he had consulted the oncologist who said that this type of cancer almost always recurs and therefore chemo and radio wouldn't be effective. However, I would be welcome to talk to the oncologist once they get the results. So now I am waiting, waiting.
I have read somewhere else on this site of the Papillon treatment and was wondering whether it would be a possibility for me. I would be very grateful for any information anyone could give me.
Am feeling pretty desolate at the moment.
Jane
