The Colon Club

Basil wrote:Surgery is at three tomorrow. I'm very hungry. Nervous as hell too. But it must be done of course.

Best wishes for a successful surgery.

Basil wrote:... I'm having robotic surgery Monday that will remove most of my rectum but the surgeon says there's enough to stitch everything back together...

If the surgeon is able to make a good join with stitches rather than with staples, in my opinon that would be preferable. Personally, I don't like the idea of having staples. That's just my personal opinion.

If you've ever seen one of these stapler contraptions, I think you might understand my preference.

http://www.ethicon.com/healthcare-professionals/products/staplers/contour-curved-cutter
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http://www.medicalstapler.com/pic/Curved-Cutter-Stapler.png

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Thanks for the well-wishes all. Bit too late for any other preparations as I'm in the waiting room now. Will let you know how it goes.

I hope your surgery and recovery go well!*hugs*

Go get it, Basil!! I wish you that everything goes well and you have a smooth recovery.

Thinking of you today Basil and hoping for a great outcome with your surgery and a smooth recovery!

Made it through! It's nearly 4:00 am and I'm awake and alert for the first time. Bad news is they gave me a temp bag "just to be safer." There is good news as well, but I'm not quite sure what it is. Surgeon was very happy with what he saw when he went in. Said it looked better than the scans.

Pain is there but manageable with hydromorphone. If all goes well I could be discharged in 2-3 days. Thanks for all your well wishes!

Gotta go, a dilaudid nap is calling my name!

Mornin' Basil! Congratulations on successful surgery! The ilio isn't that bad once u get used to it. In fact, I almost decided to keep mine rather than go back in for another surgery! I was so afraid of the reversal. Only to find out it was not bad at all. Hang in there and many congrats!!

There is talk that I won't need and post-surgery chemotherapy. This makes me both happy and a little apprehensive. SOC for stage 3 always includes post-surgery chemo, at least that's what I was told. Is that right? Maybe they are talking about downgrading to stage 2? Guess I shouldn't ruin my head thinking out it; surgeon will be by today sometime.

I think that I read somewhere that the post-op stuff is an area of debate and I guess that what they find when they go in can certainly affect the overall treatment plan.

I think that a chemo break is certainly attractive but I've seen expressions of worry about cancer coming back without the post-surgery chemo.

All I can say is, walk. Walk every chance you get. And once they let you start drinking, drink. Eat every bit of the liquid diet, too. It will get boring, I had the same stuff 3 meals a day for 2 days, but at least it's something.

Just walked for the first time less than 12 hours after surgery. It hurt pretty bad but I'm back in bed now.

I've been admitted to a hospital twice and both times was chomping st the bit to get out. They're talking about discharge tomorrow and I'm not sure. I can hardly get out of bed. Stomach muscles are in all sorts of shitty.

I don't think that I've ever been admitted to a hospital before outside of outpatient (two times) but my surgeon estimated 3-5 days for me and I'd likely stay there until I was very sure that I wouldn't have to run back for an emergency. That said, I do regular abs workouts (though not so much lately) and I'm hoping that makes recovery easier.

I'm definitely impressed that you're up and about after 12 hours.

Do you workout regularly?

No but I'm very active and do walk/run regularly. Doc explained that abs are contracted over and over again during surgery so there's soreness mixed in with the trauma.

Just had some breakfast- toast, banana and an egg - and feel much better after 48 hours with nothing.

Basil wrote:No but I'm very active and do walk/run regularly. Doc explained that abs are contracted over and over again during surgery so there's soreness mixed in with the trauma.

Just had some breakfast- toast, banana and an egg - and feel much better after 48 hours with nothing.

I very much appreciate the blog-style of your posts. Gives me an idea of what to expect in a few months.