kellywin wrote:I don't remember any pain going to the bathroom from the surgery - however, I had radiation prior to my surgery and radiation jacked up my shit down there, so things were sort of a mess (hemorrhoids). If you don't have any calmoseptine (over the counter cream - you may have to ask the pharmacist) and gloves, get some. I think any pain is going to be from wiping a hundred times. Also, get some preparation H wipes, they're great too and much easier to use when you literally have pain on your ass after making a several trips to the bathroom.
Stewsbetty wrote:I had most of my resection done laprascopicly but needed one area opened to ensure clean margins. Mine was colon cancer. I was in the hospital for 5 days. On a pain pump while there. Once home I had the hydromorphone for only a day and then switched to just Tylenol. I was feeling myself within 2 weeks of the surgery and resumed most of my normal eating and activity. It was hard to remember not to lift things or get too active because I was feeling so much better without the tumour. I hope all will proceed smoothly for your surgery date.
tarheelmom wrote:From one engineer to another ...
I had lap surgery to remove my rectum, sigmoid, and part of my descending colon plus a temp ileo back in April Since my tumor was very low, the surgeon also had to do some trans-anal suturing. My surgery was 5+ hours on a Tuesday. I was walking laps on Wed. morning and went home on Saturday. I did not use any narcotics for the pain - only Tylenol and Celebrex. I was part of a protocol called ERAS - enhanced recovery after surgery. Honestly I thought the C-section was a more difficult recovery but maybe because I was trying to learn how to breastfeed, take care of a newborn, and recover all at the same time. I went back to work in less than two weeks, and I was driving the week after surgery. I did get some sort of horrible skin reaction to surgical adhesive which may have been the worst part of the experience.
Now pooping after the reversal - that is a whole different ballgame. I'm still finding that a challenging experience ... Best of luck!
Pita wrote:Hi Mary,
Instead of writing my experience here's the link to what I wrote when I had LARS: http://coloncancersupport.colonclub.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=55236
Another about incisions: http://coloncancersupport.colonclub.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=55323
Still having bowel issues, haven't found the correct mix for Milk of Magnesia and Immodium yet, chemo makes it almost impossible to become regular. My colorectal surgeon said it can take up to 2 years to operate correctly.
Best wishes and prayers for your surgery Mary, hope it goes well and easy. oxo
Marylandmaniac wrote:So right now it looks like I will be having laparoscopic (or possibly robotic lap surgery if available) on December 14th... what should I expect? ... I am wondering if you all have any advice or recommendations.
Green Tea wrote:Marylandmaniac wrote:So right now it looks like I will be having laparoscopic (or possibly robotic lap surgery if available) on December 14th... what should I expect? ... I am wondering if you all have any advice or recommendations.
I have never had laparoscopic surgery, but I have a few suggestions:
1. Read whatever you can about LARS -Low Anterior Resection Syndrome. Patients who have had part or most of their rectum removed usually have symptoms of this nature. Even though you are not having an LAR open surgery, per se, you will still have part of your rectum missing after your surgery is over, and this part will not grow back or restore itself in time.
2. Read whatever you can about SSO - Sphincter Sparing Operations. Surgeons who do rectal surgery need to know about this procedure and need to have quite a bit of experience in this area. Your surgery is not only about removing a malignant tumor; it is also about performing the operation in such a way that the patient maintains a good quality of life (QOL). This is why it is so important to have a Board Certified Colorectal Surgeon perform the surgery.
3. Read a sample Informed Consent form for your type of surgery, and be prepared to ask your surgeon questions of clarification.
Green Tea wrote:Another thing you might do between now and mid-December is to review some of the experiences of past Stage III laparoscopic surgery patients who have posted their experiences here. For example, here is one report given by a Stage IIIB patient (an engineer!) who had a laparoscopic LAR almost four years ago. This report is complete with photos of the surgery scars and incisions:
http://coloncancersupport.colonclub.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=45031&p=325206#p325206
I have the impression that the surgery that you are going to undergo would be what they call a "laparoscopic assisted resection" -- i.e., a surgery where some but not all of the maneuvers are done by laparoscopy. Some patients here have called this type of surgery a "hybrid laparoscopic surgery" since the surgeon needs to make an extra incision that is big enough to remove the large tumor, as the three standard laparoscopic key-holes are not large enough to handle this. You can see this in the "Animated Gif of my incision healing" shown in the above link. This extra incision is also mentioned in the recent post by pita.
BTW, there are a number of engineers here -- mechanical engineers, chemical engineers, electrical engineers, software engineers, system engineers -- who have had rectal cancer surgery in the past and who monitor this board from time to time.
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