My dad has just had a colonoscopy and it looks like he has bowel cancer

[pinkchampagne1]

He has had symptoms for a while (mucus and rectal bleeding) but has put off getting checked out until recently. His FIT test was very high so he was fact tracked for a colonoscopy which he had today. Just phoned my mum and it looks like they have found a large growth which looks to be cancer. My dad is 83 and I adore him so I am so upset. 😢

Good to hear there is a plan of action in place OP, and you’ve read many good outcomes on here.

I feel better for knowing the plan. I was really anxious today but felt better once I knew the outcome of Dad’s appointment.
It now all seems to be moving fast.

Yes, I think most people would say that the waiting is excruciating but once you know what's being planned, however difficult it might be, it somehow becomes easier to deal with. I wish your father well and keep in touch with us as to how he's getting on.

. I've had pelvic radiotherapy (thoguh not for bowel cancer) and it can be quite grueling especially if you are quite a long way from the hospital as it tends to be every weekday for a month or so. The process itself is quick and painless, but there is a lot of waiting around (for pelvic radiotherapy you have to have the same amount of water in your bladder every time, so it's a case of having to have a pee when they give you the go ahead and then drinking a certain amount of water and waiting for it to work through the system).

I've no first hand experience of chemotherapy as they decided the risks would outwieh the benfits in my particular case but if I'd had it I was told I'd only need to go into hospital for the day every few weeks, with tablets to take in between. I'm not sure if that;s usual or not.

I was a mess today - it was probably the most I have cried since my Dad’s diagnosis. I tried to go to the gym to clear my head and my heart rate was much higher than usual.
Once I found out what the plan was, I seemed to really calm down.

Dad is waiting for the oncologist to phone now to fix an appointment to discuss his treatment plan.
He has the pre op on Thursday for his surgery next week so things are now moving quickly and my parents are really impressed with the NHS.

Thanks for the information on radiotherapy. I will pre warn Dad if they decide he needs it. The hospital is around a half hour drive for them.

Thank you all for all the support and information you have given me. My dad even commented on how well informed I am on everything, and most of it is from the advice I have got from this thread. 🙂

Well done for going to the gym - it’s so hard to keep occupied when you’re waiting so at least you channelled those worries into something positive.

Glad you feel calmer. Having a plan helps and it’s good you feel informed from this thread. Do stick to reliable sources of info - Macmillan, Bowel Cancer UK rather than random googles.

If you or your family need some emotional support try Can-Empower and for other local support post treatment try Cancer Care Map. Your dad’s CNS and wider clinical team will also advise and do ask them too - they’ll be happy to advise.

it’s good things are moving and your parents feel confident with how things are progressing now.

Keep us posted or check in here if you want further support as your dad goes through treatment if it helps. 😊 Take care

Bowel cancer can be treated successfully if it hasn't spread to other parts of the body. If it's stayed in the bowel he may well be able to have it removed surgically and recover. It's when it is metastatic, having spread to organs like the lungs and liver that survival outcomes drop. I hope your dad's ct scan comes back with good news x

Unfortunately it has spread to his liver but it is a small amount and not a mass so they are hoping they can zap it with whatever treatment he is having.
They plan to remove the tumour in his bowel once he has had whatever treatment they are planning (he has to see the oncologist first) but are fitting him with a stoma bag next Friday to help with his symptoms.

How’s things @pinkchampagne1? Hope you are all doing ok & your dad has started treatment.

Thanks for asking how my dad is doing. 🙂 He had a PET scan yesterday and is going in to hospital on Friday to have surgery to fit a stomach bag. I think they want this fitted quite quickly as the tumour is quite low in his rectum and causing him a lot of issues with constipation etc.

I am pleased things are moving now but I am a little worried that treatment might be delayed while he recovers from the surgery.
He hasn’t seen an oncologist yet, just the surgeon, but they plan for him to have treatment after the stoma is fitted and then they will do the big surgery to remove the tumour once they have shrunk it a bit.

He still looks so well that it is hard to get my head round all this. The surgeon did comment on how well he looks and told him to keep doing whatever he is doing as it will help him get through his treatment.

That’s good your dad is continuing to look well. Things are moving in the right direction. Take care & hope the surgery goes well for the stoma on Friday.

Pubmed is a searchable database of thousands of medical journals. The letter was published in the British Journal of Cancer. Small increase in cancers found in those with frozen shoulder.

@pinkchampagne1 hope all goes well with your dads initial surgery and the follow up chemo/radio. It is amazing how well lots of the elderly do after these type of surgeries. Anaesthesia is safer than it has ever been even in someone of your dad’s age.
Really important that he keeps moving before and after the op and that he keeps up his protein intake to help with eating.

Pubmed isn't a journal, it's a database/archive of all medical literature/publications- It's legit (as a Dr of 10y)

Re the last point - yes I was told that a positive outlook and keeping active are really helpful in aiding a good recovery from surgery and in coping with any further treatment. .

Thank you all for your advice and good wishes.

My dad is feeling anxious about the surgery tomorrow, which is understandable.
I am feeling quite worried and emotional but it has to be done. It just all suddenly feels very real.

He’ll be ok. The surgery tomorrow will make things much easier for him. Thinking of you and your dad, let us know how he gets on.

If the only spread is a tiny spot on the liver, that's really good news.

If he's having chemotherapy, the usual drug combination is pretty gentle on the body compared to most chemo's, which is also good. No nausea and vomiting or other horrible effects that you hear about..

My late husband had rectal cancer, but unfortunately it had spread very widely by the time he was diagnosed. But the curative rate for someone like your dad is very good.

All the best for his surgery.

Hope tomorrow goes ok @pink champagne

So sorry that you lost your husband to this awful disease 😢

Thank you, however for your reassuring message - it has given me hope.

Thank you. I hesitated to post, but really, colo-rectal cancer is very curable in the earlier stages. My husband was just unlucky to be at advanced stage 4, due to an initial misdiagnosis.

Will be thinking of you and your dad tomorrow.

My dad has just gone into theatre.
Apparently it will be around 4 weeks before he should start treatment. That seems a long time to me but the surgeon said the tumour would have been there a while so won’t necessarily grow anymore as it is quite large.
Guess we have to have faith in them but I can’t help but worry. 😔

Hope all has gone well with the surgery.

Is it chemotherpy or radiotherapy that he's having ? I imagine that they'll want to give him some time to recover from the surgery and get used to the stoma before they do anything else.

Surgery all done. My dad is in a lot of discomfort but they can’t give him anymore pain relief. He is lucky in that they have put him in the private part of the hospital but he got told off for attempting to get out of bed after surgery to take himself to the toilet! 😣

Not sure whether it is chemotherapy or radiotherapy they will be starting with. The surgeon said the oncologist will have a plan and we are hoping they will talk to him while he is in hospital.

We have been told he will be in hospital 3-4 days and then a nurse will visit him daily at home.

Hope he gets a decent night sleep and is feeling ok tomorrow. Poor guy.

They are correct the tumour will have been there a while. Probably years. It’s important he recovers and gets used to his stoma before he starts treatment.

He’ll be ok, the first hurdle is over.

I visited Dad yesterday. He is in a lot of pain, especially when he moves, but I guess it is to be expected. Other than that he was in quite good spirits.

He is lucky in that they have put him in the private side of the hospital so he has his own room and the nurses looking after him are all amazing.

They have said he will be in until at least Tuesday. He is still on a liquid diet and they need to show him how to use the stoma. I think he then has a nurse coming to the house each day.