A little scared ...

mpb1963 over 1 year ago

3 replies
181 subscribers
769 views

Hello all,

Will try to make this story as short as possible ...

2 years ago I was diagnosed with bladder cancer (PT1aG3, very early stage). After nearly 2 years of successful therapy and treatment, I have experienced a 3, 4 weeks of complete constipation. Then one day I noticed a little blood (not bright red, more like purple-ish). Went to the GP. Because my FIT test (3 months ago) was apparently negative, she thought that might rule out colon cancer, but did a "test" (sensing the walls of the rectum) and found that there is some thickening of the walls and arranged for a sigmoidoscopy. Since then I have repeated the occult blood test (this one a FOB, house kit) and that came out positive (faint line in the T, good line on the C).Also, I have since started feeling a sensation of pressure in the right lower part of the abdomen (I think this is the ascending colon)also accompanied by some back pain. I have always suffered from constipation throughout my life and at one point I feared I had a blockage or similar ... I also have suffered from back pain for the last few years (lumbar region), so the occasional pain or lack of bowels movements have never really worried me too much.

First, I don't understand why the NHS is "only" going to do a sigmoidoscopy (which can only "see" the sigmoid colon ...). Anyone has any suggestions, idea, "calming" messages?

Thanks very much! This cancer forum has been the best help I have had during my journey!

Marco

Neena over 1 year ago

Hi Marco

I've had colon cancer and had the tumour removed in Dec, but like you have suffered from lumbar pain in my case for over 20 years. I I am hoping that I can relate to you, I too am used to being constipated mainly due to the pain meds, it's only after I had a procedure on the nerve in the lower right side that I started to come of the pain killers and noticed constipation and blood in my stool. I too went to GP, had the checks and when hemorrhoid stuff had no impact they booked me in for a colonoscopy. This was because they didn't know where a problem was in the colon. So with your symptoms if maybe that they only need to check the lower part of the bowel and rectum.Generally the NHS try to only do checks they need to, if they come back inconclusive then they look further I suspect. I myself have had not have two Sigmoidoscopy as one in March and then again in April as they wanted to check the resection (from the operation) to be able to determine if they can reverse the ilostomy they have me in Dec. What they seem to find in March is abnormal cells,so they repeated the procedure took more biopsies and I am waiting for results. THE waiting is what has made me spiral downwards as it's unknown what they've found,and what it means but also it means I can't have the reversal ilostomy until they get to the bottom of this. It was made clear at the last Sigmoidoscopy that if these results aren't clear then they have to operate to determine what's going on. In my case I've had complications from the tumour removal in Dec, however my brother in law who also was diagnosed with colon cancer 3 months before me had the treatment and had the tumour removed and is doing well. Each of our cases are different with different complications, or in some cases no complications. I went figured out how or why this happens, it just does as they say we play the band we are dealt!

I hope you can take something from the above and it helps to calm you, I know this forum has helped me feel less alone.

Take care Neena

mpb1963 over 1 year ago in reply to Neena

Thanks for your reply. As usual, the waiting is a killer... I remember 2 years ago with the bladder cancer ... and I thought "Well, at least, if this happens again I will be prepared". Yeah, right. Not at all ...

Good luck for your reversal procedure.

Neena over 1 year ago in reply to mpb1963

Yep I know exactly what you mean, it's like.. Wait I've done that.. We dealt with it... I have just been thrown and your mind can go to dark places. Weird but keeping busy does help, it's helped with me.

Take care xxx