Postby NHMike » Wed Aug 02, 2017 6:45 am
It could be diet or a blockage. There are likely dietary changes that you could make to fix a general constipation problem unless there's an underlying medical condition. On the diet stuff: do you get enough fiber? I think that I read that women should get at least 30 grams of fiber per day and it can be a real challenge getting that much with all of the processed foods in our supermarkets these days. I do daily food tracking using a web page to keep track of fiber intake (this was before cancer - cancer can change what works better in terms of diet). If you increase your fiber intake, then you should probably increase your water intake as fiber tends to absorb water which is why it's usually softer than other stuff.
If you fear that there is a real blockage, such as a polyp or something else that's putting pressure on places to make, then I'd recommend seeing a doctor to check you out for various things that could cause your problem. I didn't see you indicate your age but, if you're over 50, I'd recommend a colonoscopy if you've never had one - they can go up through your colon and see if anything is there and remove polyps that could potentially turn cancerous in the future. Dealing with non-cancerous polyps is a lot easier than going through cancer treatment.
6/17: ER rectal bleeding; Colonoscopy
7/17: 3B rectal. T3N1bM0. 5.2 4.5 4.3 cm. Lymphs: 6 x 4 mm, 8 x 6, 5 x 5
7/17-9/17: Xeloda radiation
7/5: CEA 2.7; 8/16: 1.9; 11/30: 0.6; 12/20 1.4; 1/10 1.8; 1/31 2.2; 2/28 2.6; 4/10 2.8; 5/1 2.8; 5/29 3.2; 7/13 4.5; 8/9 2.8, 2/12 1.2
MSS, KRAS G12D
10/17: 2.7 2.2 1.6 cm (-90%). Lymphs: 3 x 3 mm (-62.5%), 4 x 3 (-75%), 5 x 3 (-40%). 5.1 CM from AV
10/17: LAR, Temp Ileostomy, Path Complete Response
CapeOx (8) 12/17-6/18
7/18: Reversal, Port Removal
2/19: Clean CT