Hello all,
I've been reading through the forum the past few days and already feel as if I know some of you! I am sending good thoughts, prayers, and positive vibes for all of those diagnosed and caring for the diagnosed.
Let me first say that I have a colonoscopy scheduled for Tuesday. I have a family history of colon cancer (grandmother, dx age 65, but beat it and is still around at 88!) along with some long term symptoms that I've been dismissing for years (not realizing that they are symptoms) as well as some new ones that have popped up in the last couple of months. I also had a colonoscopy about 15 years ago where a couple of polyps were removed- at the time I was told that they'd been removed and I was good to go. I had no idea that polyps could be a pre-cursor to colorectal cancer. I was young and living in another city/state and have not been able to get my hands on those records, so I have no idea if anyone actually looked at them, biopsied them, etc., but I don't believe that to be the case. I also received an IBS diagnosis around the same time (hence all those symptoms I've dismissed over the years) but have suspected for many years that I actually have IBD of some kind or another. At any rate, time will tell sooner rather than later, since the colonoscopy is in a couple of days!
This brings me to my question... I've never seriously researched anything about colon cancer, but have been doing so the last week so that I can torture myself before I go in for my scope. In all my reading of others' stories, I'm confused about the diagnosis timelines. It sounds like a lot of people wake up and are told, "it's cancer", but then many others are told, "It looks like trouble, but I can't possibly say for sure until we biopsy". Is the difference here seeing a tumor versus a polyp? For those who had polyps biopsied, how long did you have to wait for the results? My assumption is that on Tuesday they will find more polyps to remove (considering I had them 15 years ago, it seems odd that I'd randomly have a couple at age 20 and then never have any more ever again) and it is my understanding (from online reading) that those will be biopsied, depending on what kind of polyp they are- or maybe regardless of what kind they are. If nothing else, I expect them to dx SOMETHING... Crohn's, Ulcerative Colitis, or possibly Diverticulosis/Diverticulitis... I just don't see this being an "all clear" type of scenario. I'd love to hear your dx timelines. Thanks in advance for your help!
Kara