cathy123 wrote:Hi Maurissa,
Well, it sounds like you caught this in time. Congratulations! I am sure they will do more tests when they remove the rest of the polyp, and if it comes back differently you will be able to have the appropriate followup treatment. Hopefully it is still benign.
After my colonoscopy the pieces of the tumor removed were not cancerous (but had a high degree of dysplasia). I had a second procedure and that time it came back positive for cancer. All along the surgeon told me he was pretty sure it was malignant, so I didn't get my hopes up too much. But at least it was stage 1.
Given the family connection I would ask about genetic testing. Hopefully you caught this one in time, but it sounds like you have something that may have become cancer given another year or two.
cathy123 wrote:Oh, and I did not have any menstrual or back issues do can't help you there.
Jachut wrote:Well, I'd be relieved but apprehensive - you do have a big and probably life changing surgery ahead of you. How much of your rectum will you be able to keep? I'd think as far as gynaecological issues are concerned, its radiation and chemo that cause the problems there. I was rather sore after diagnosis, from having no pain whatsoever, all the poking and prodding did produce a fair degree of residual pain. Hopefully that's all it is for you.
Lisa90 wrote:Welcome to this forum!
I'm new(ish) here too and it is a very friendly place
I'm probably going to tell you what you don't want to hear - wait until you get all the results back before you make up your mind either way, that it's cancer or not cancer. Unfortunately they can make mistakes but it's very rare. Sometimes a test will come out differently the first time than subsequent tests, too. But just wait until you reach that bridge to cross it. Holding thumbs that it keeps coming back benign though!
As for the menstual problems, when they did my colectomy my surgeon poked around a little bit more and found a benign cyst in my fallopian tube. My periods had always been a little irregular, but maybe that had something to do with it, in my case... I think you should see a gynaecologist though, especially if it persists, as it sounds like you're not normally irregular.
Unfortunately I can't answer your questions about pain as I didn't have any polyps removed, but I think it's entirely possible that it would be sore
Best of luck!
Jacques wrote:SoupRgirl wrote: ... My burning questions are as follows:
-how relieved should I be? That is a large polyp and the path report stated (in med terms) that is looked very much like cancer
-how thorough is testing...do they swab each piece or? Are they ever wrong?
-if the testing is in fact super thorough, what are the odds the rest is also benign? ...
I don't have the answers to your questions, but since the procedure you are facing is a polypectomy of some sort, then you might be interested in reading about the pathology reporting standards for such procedures. (Note: The article below is a highly technical article, but it may have the answers to some of your questions)
Polypectomy and Local Resections of the Colorectum
https://www.rcpa.edu.au/Library/Practising-Pathology/Structured-Pathology-Reporting-of-Cancer/Cancer-Protocols/Gastrointestinal/Guide-Polypectomy-local-resections-CR
https://www.rcpa.edu.au/Library/Practising-Pathology/Macroscopic-Cut-Up/Specimen/Gastrointestinal/Colorectal/Colorectal-polyp/Colorectal-polyp-dictation-template
SoupRgirl wrote:cathy123 wrote:Hi Maurissa,
Well, it sounds like you caught this in time. Congratulations! I am sure they will do more tests when they remove the rest of the polyp, and if it comes back differently you will be able to have the appropriate followup treatment. Hopefully it is still benign.
After my colonoscopy the pieces of the tumor removed were not cancerous (but had a high degree of dysplasia). I had a second procedure and that time it came back positive for cancer. All along the surgeon told me he was pretty sure it was malignant, so I didn't get my hopes up too much. But at least it was stage 1.
Given the family connection I would ask about genetic testing. Hopefully you caught this one in time, but it sounds like you have something that may have become cancer given another year or two.
Hi Cathy,
(Not sure if I am responding correctly, but here goes...!)
Thank you so much for your response and also for sharing your story.
I am cautiously optimistic, but we'll see what happens at surgery. My friends and family are so relieved that my results from first pathology report were negative, they seem to have put it away on a shelf out of their minds like I am somehow in the clear on all counts but I still have surgery and the very real possibility of a different outcome this time.
Thanks again for sharing your story...I was hoping that first clear path was a given for a second, but I guess that's not true.
All the best,
Maurissa
cathy123 wrote:SoupRgirl wrote:cathy123 wrote:Hi Maurissa,
Well, it sounds like you caught this in time. Congratulations! I am sure they will do more tests when they remove the rest of the polyp, and if it comes back differently you will be able to have the appropriate followup treatment. Hopefully it is still benign.
After my colonoscopy the pieces of the tumor removed were not cancerous (but had a high degree of dysplasia). I had a second procedure and that time it came back positive for cancer. All along the surgeon told me he was pretty sure it was malignant, so I didn't get my hopes up too much. But at least it was stage 1.
Given the family connection I would ask about genetic testing. Hopefully you caught this one in time, but it sounds like you have something that may have become cancer given another year or two.
Hi Cathy,
(Not sure if I am responding correctly, but here goes...!)
Thank you so much for your response and also for sharing your story.
I am cautiously optimistic, but we'll see what happens at surgery. My friends and family are so relieved that my results from first pathology report were negative, they seem to have put it away on a shelf out of their minds like I am somehow in the clear on all counts but I still have surgery and the very real possibility of a different outcome this time.
Thanks again for sharing your story...I was hoping that first clear path was a given for a second, but I guess that's not true.
All the best,
Maurissa
Hope I didn't scare you - if you dr is going ahead with surgery I am guessing he is more confident of the biopsy results. Mine pretty much told me he knew it was cancer all along.
Do you know what type of surgery you are having? Are the going thru the abdomen and removing a section of your rectum/colon along with lymph nodes or going in below and taking out a piece of the wall? My understanding is that the second type does not leave you with too many after effects. That is what I would choose if it wasn't definitely cancerous.
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