Stage 3 Colon Cancer

My friend is a 45 year old male, late stage 3 colon cancer. It is close to the anus and they might have to remove the anus as well. He is in decent physical shape (slightly pudgy), and has started working out. He looks fine right now but he is going to start chemo later today.

what should I expect?
What will he go through?
Will my buddy Al survive?

-Mike

His chances are fairly good IF HE FOLLOWS his medical plan. It is so important not to miss treatments and speak to him about a med that will bring up his red cell count, the doctors know what it is. I wish you both alot of success

2008-10-29 07:15:21 by Mike

Jim Burns of Fort Bragg, California discusses his journey from diagnosis to cure.

I had the tumor removed, and it hadn't spread but has gone into my lymph nodes, so stage 3. But my CEA results are always normal 3.5.

First, you must understand that chemo is often not as bad for people as it was even just a few years ago. There are wonderful new drugs that eliminate most nausea and vomiting as a side effect. Be sure to ask your doctor about prescribing Aloxi (often given along with the chemo infusion) and Emend (given as a pill for 3 days during/after chemo). These drugs are not inexpensive, but they are incredibly effective.

I completed AC chemo a few weeks ago and wasn't nauseated even once. I did lose my appetite, and generally didn't feel very good, but I wasn't sick at all.

Chemo day itself isn't bad at all ... they infuse several drugs at the same time as the chemo (steroids, anti-nausea, etc.) so you just kind of sit there, you can read, watch tv, play Nintendo, whatever you like. You can unplug and roll your IV line to the restroom, you just have to be careful not to pop the needle out.

Many people have a lot of fatigue from chemo, but I found I just got very sleepy for Days 2-4 after chemo. On Day 5, the sleepiness was gone.

Your sense of taste changes, and foods you liked won't taste right. You are advised to avoid foods you love, as you may associate them with chemo and many months later, you will hate them. You are advised to eat whatever appeals to you, but especially proteins, as this helps your body rebuild the good cells that are harmed by the chemo.

Some chemos constipate you, some give you diarrhea, some do first one, then the other. You can take over-the-counter remedies for these conditions.

Your body is very resilient, and after a week or so, you start to feel better and better ... and then it's time for the next chemo.

Trust me when I tell you that for many of us, the anticipation of chemo was worse than the chemo itself. There are side effects, but you are strong enough to get through them. No side effects were even as bad as having the flu.

Best of luck to you. You will probably be on different chemo drugs than I was, but some things are pretty common among various treatments.

2008-04-07 12:41:26 by Helen S

What treatment would you recommend?

Depending on where in the colon it is they may want to do radiation and chemotheray to shrink it before they remove it. If it's in the rectum they use radiation first, then try to remove. They can remove the colon completely or just part of it. I just had 12 inches removed but didn't have any in the lymph nodes. Cancer travels by way of the lymph nodes, this could mean they also have cancer in other parts of their body. They should get a CT Scan to see if it has traveled or not.

2009-01-03 16:00:44 by avservs2003

Price: $24.95

8 more polyps non cancerous polyps,she with be doing chemo.

A lot of things can influence colon cancer survival rates. Stage is a major factor, but tumor location and country of residence have also been shown to impact survival. For example, tumors in the right side of the colon are often caught later because symptoms take longer to emerge, and in countries where early screening is relatively uncommon, tumors are caught later. Studies have also found that exercise may increase colon cancer survival rates.

According to the American Cancer Society, 83 percent of people with stage 3A colon cancer are still alive five years after their diagnosis. The survival rates for stage 3B (64 percent) and stage 3C (44 percent) are less encouraging. However, it's important to remember that survival rates are generalizations and your individual chances of survival may be quite different. Also, survival data reflects what has happened in the past. With all the new chemotherapy drugs available, it's possible that today's survival rate for stage 3 colon cancer is significantly higher.

2007-12-14 22:40:59 by federal342003

Everyone is an individual so there is no real way to answer this question. Reoccurence is possible for any type of cancer at any stage .. in general the higher the grade of tumor and stage of cancer the more likely of relapse. But that is a generalization as some people may never relapse. That is why once remission is achieved that doctors recommend a regularly scheduled CT , PET, or MRI to check for disease reoccurence. There is treatment for reoccuring cancer.

PLWC: Dealing with cancer reoccurence.
http://www.plwc.org/portal/site/PLWC/men uitem.034b98abc65a8f566343cc10ee37a01d/? vgnextoid=c7b7ea97a56d9010VgnVCM100000f2 730ad1RCRD

2007-11-01 16:01:50 by brisseyh