I just had surgery on tuesday. The doctor said he left me over half my rectum and was able to reconnect me, so no bag. Hoping to get discharged tomorrow. I am disconnected from all needles and tubes already. Getting Tylenol for the pain. Had a few bm’s already. I’m feeling pretty good about the futu...

Also about those suspicious nodes, this is the update. “There are a few small lymph nodes in the mesial rectal fat with short axes of 2 to 3 millimeters. They are smaller than on the prior study. No adenopathy is appreciated.” Am I correct in interpreting this as non cancerous? I know the surgeon wi...

What city is your sister being treated in?

I’m in Ottawa.

The part about no chemo for stage 2 is alarming.

Thanks for the reply.

I noticed the “pro”gression . There are many small errors in the report, I think it may be generated from some kind of dictation software, or maybe it’s just a guy that doesn’t care to correct typos.

For sure I will discuss all of this with my doctor when I do meet with him.

I just got my post chemoradiation / pre surgery CT scan and MRI report back. I have not seen the doctor yet. Of course I decided to read it and try to figure out what it means. CT scan states: “Known rectal mass is no longer visible on CT.” I interpret this as positive. The MRI states: “There is som...

My tumor is pretty much in the exact same place. I’ve been treated as rectal, and had my last radiation treatment a little over a month ago. My surgeon said that I will lose 1/3 to 1/2 of my rectum. He also said that it’s most likely I will have a temporary stoma. My surgery is 2-4 weeks away. Had a...

Coffee is one of the things I stopped drinking as soon as I was diagnosed, however I’ve been reading a lot of articles that suggest that coffee is actually good for us. I drank two large coffees every day minimum for years, maybe decades, and obviously it didn’t prevent anything in my case, though m...

I was a seafarer until 3 months ago. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to go back to my job. I don’t know if my company will even take me back. I was a contract employee, so limited sick benefits. They run out next month. So in all likelihood I will need to find another job, but I have surgery comin...

Well I’m definitely feeling some pain around the anus and it feels like I’m shitting rocks. Last treatment was last Friday, so about 5-6 days ago now.

Hope it passes soon.

I’m not sure about that. I asked the therapist if these were any stronger and she said no.

I did #25 this morning and am finished this stage.

Meet with surgeon in about 2 weeks time.

Well I’m ready in the sense that I will voice my concerns and ask a few questions that I do have. My surgeon is a general surgeon / oncology surgeon. I’ve met him a few times. He dropped in on my colonoscopy, he’s run a few scenarios by me but no final plan yet. I’ve been reading these boards daily ...

My last week I’ve had noticeable fatigue and more bowel activities like mucous farts, more frequent BM’s and definitely softer stools. I wouldn’t describe it as passing glass, more like grit. Really looking forward to the end of my final treatment tomorrow. Scared of the surgery ahead but happy to b...

I don’t know why either. That’s the treatment plan my doctors came up with, so I trust their judgement.

I have two suspicious nodes so maybe they wanted to carpet bomb the whole area, so to speak.

Thanks for the reply. I just hope the surgeon can leave me as much rectum as possible. It seems as though my tumor is on the colon side of the bend, and I know they need to take tissue on either side. Just hoping for the best case scenario going forward. Of course these are all things I will bring u...

I have been taking preventative measures like the baking soda / salt water mouth rinse, putting moisturizer on my hands and feet at night, and not wiping with paper when I do have a BM. Straight into the shower. I’m pretty much eating whatever I want. A few things have upset my system but nothing to...