colon cancer

[Zellapotter]

I have had irregular bowel movements for as long as I can remember. Recently I noticed blood streaks in my stool. I’m scheduled for a colonoscopy this week but my anxiety is through the roof. My sibling was recently diagnosed with colon cancer and now I’m scared that I may have it as well. Any advice on how to handle the anxiety?

[JoyceJH]

Hi Zellapotter. I felt the same way 2 years ago when I had on and off constipation and difficulty to empty my bowel. I was extremely frightened and thinking of the worst. I glad I called our local anxiety and depression hotline and speak to the consultant. I realised it was very important to let it all out by speaking to someone. Also, he reminded me that we are extremely brave to take early actions to seek help. Colon cancer could be easy to treat if it was diagnosed early. Therefore, we could save our lives if the doctor found something odd in colonscopy and treat it before it gets worse. Hope this helps

[Zellapotter in reply to JoyceJH]

Thank you for responding. I’m trying to stay busy and distracted until I have it done.

[JoyceJH in reply to Zellapotter]

I am having my 3rd colonoscopy done this Monday. Good luck to both of us. I am doing the same thing, trying to get all my housework done before I start the prep...

[Zellapotter in reply to JoyceJH]

Good luck! I’m starting my clear liquid diet today and the prep starts tonight. I’ll let you know how it goes.

[YYTTat]

Every blood streak and irregular bowel movement doesn't mean Colon cancer. There might be many other reasons. Try not to panic and Stay positive . You ll be fine insha'Allah. Engage yourself in other activities till your colonoscopy.

[Zellapotter in reply to YYTTat]

Thank you. I’m trying to stay busy.

[GCCA-Survivor Administrator]

Hi Zellapotter,

Thank you for posting with us. I see you have a colonoscopy scheduled for this week. That is absolutely the best way to get answers to what you’re dealing with. Getting those answers will go a long way and not having to speculate and drive the anxiety surrounding what may or may not be occurring. You should be proud of yourself that you’re on your way to getting those answers.

I’m sorry to hear about your sibling being diagnosed with colon cancer. Do you know the stage of the colon cancer? Also, did your sibling undergo genetic testing? Genetic testing will tell you your biomarkers. Any cancer patient needs to have genetic testing to find out if the cancer is hereditary. This may drive a lot of further testing for your family as well. This is especially true with colon cancer. It is very crucial that you have this done. This type of testing not only can determine if the tumor type is hereditary in your family, but it can also lead to certain therapies that could be beneficial in treating the cancer and it can also tell you what therapies to avoid. Therapies that would not be beneficial and actually be detrimental to your cancer fight. Knowing your biomarkers are extremely important and can lead to a lot of positive things in a cancer fight.

I am a stage four colon cancer survivor that has what’s called Lynch syndrome. My cancer is hereditary. I found out about it very early after being diagnosed by having genetic testing done. Knowing my biomarkers indicated that every sibling on my father’s side of the family needed to get tested. Any sibling that tested positive would need to have their children tested as well. Having this knowledge leads to surveillance of the situation so anything can either be prevented or caught very early in the process and much easier to deal with before it has to become a fight. It was two and a half years after getting genetic testing that a clinical trial found me because it dealt with the biomarkers that were revealed from the genetic tests👍🤔. I had colon cancer, but the clinical trial was with the therapy that was beneficial for lung and melanoma cancers. But when looking at the mutations across those cancer types, they were able to find common biomarkers that would lead to the belief that I may benefit from that therapy as well. And they were absolutely correct. Clinical trials save my life. It was amazing stuff. The most important thing I did in my 4+ year cancer fight was get genetic testing right at the beginning. I had forgotten I did it, but all of the sudden a clinical trial came looking for me.

I do see a lot of people that are dealing with anxiety as well. It is a real thing, but I have had very little of it. One of the reasons is that I didn’t focus on what I didn’t know. I didn't focus on what I couldn't control. I don't know how to fight cancer. I had to leave that up to my doctors. What I did know how to do was be the best patient I could be. I knew my body was the playing field and I needed to do what I could to help my doctors and my fight. I could control things like my positivity, hydration, nutrition, exercise, my faith, and my attitude. I knew if I did that I would be contributing in a beneficial way because I didn’t know how to fight cancer. If I did, I would have probably been in on that as well. But I knew I could control these other things and that was my focus. And those things are a lot to deal with. One of the things I couldn’t afford to happen was getting nauseated. When I felt that coming on, I would focus on how to beat it. I knew I had to eat to maintain my nutrition. I would season food so that I could taste them and I would eat smaller portions and more often have smaller portion meals. There are lots of things to focus on besides what you can’t control. I think that’s a good way to deal with some of the anxiety.

I also looked at cancer as being the opponent that needed to be defeated. If you’re familiar with any sporting event or participated in sports, there’s always an opponent that needs to be defeated. Cancer is just that. I tried to continue doing things as I have always been doing them because it was my perception that if I had to stop them, that would be a win for cancer. I also realized that sometimes you have to give ground to cancer. Sometimes you can’t do your normal routine. The fatigue and side effects can play a big role with that. So it’s OK to give ground, but always have a plan to take it back. I would do a lot of cycling as a part of my fitness routine. But there were times when I could not do that. I had to stop. Eventually I would get back on the bike and take back that ground. I call that “getting in cancer’s face”. I was in cancer’s face a lot👍😂🚴‍♂️.

I do wish you the best with your colonoscopy this week. I have one scheduled for this Thursday as well. I’m glad you are having that done as that will give both of us some good answers as to what’s going on. I look at my colonoscopies as a way of still beating cancer. I have no doubt that it will give me the proof I am looking for and it will be the proof that I’ve received the past 6 years. This will be my 6th year of being NED (No Evidence of Disease).

My colonoscopy prep advice … I move the timeline of the preparation up an hour to an hour and a half from whenever they recommend you do. So you are starting early the "day before" and this way the symptoms from the preparation will have calmed down earlier and you can get a good night’s sleep before the day of the colonoscopy. The prep is what it is. You have to do it right so the procedure will be beneficial. I also find that adding lime flavored Gatorade to the mix gives it better flavor. Nothing red!! You can drink more liquid to thin out the mix as well. You have to repeat the same procedure the day of the colonoscopy. Do the same thing. Move the timeline up an hour to an hour and a half. Get the preparation done and when the wave of prep side effects ends, you can focus on having a beneficial colonoscopy and not worried about having to find a bathroom all the time. I propofol as my anesthesia and look forward to most relaxing nap ever.👍

Good luck this week. Sending you good vibes for good results from your tests.

Thank you,

~Tom, GCCA Survivor - Colon Cancer Connected Site Administrator.

Just a reminder - this group is here to offer support, share experiences, and offer our thoughts - but this is not medical advice, and you should always consult your medical professional(s). Additionally, for all emergencies, seek urgent medical care, never delay.

[Zellapotter in reply to GCCA-Survivor]

Thank you so much for replying. I’m trying to be the best patient I can and let the doctors take care of me. Also, thank you for your advice regarding the genetic testing. I will definitely make sure we look into that. I will update you all after my colonoscopy.

[Zellapotter]

I had my colonoscopy today. They found 2 polyps which they removed. Also, they found internal hemorrhoids. She wasn’t concerned but is sending the polyps out for biopsy, which is normal. She said she would see me back in 3 years for my next colonoscopy unless something does show up in the biopsy.