New Bleeding

itsallgood73
itsallgood73 Member Posts: 5
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
Hi there,

Just to re-cap -- I was dx July 2005 rectal adenocarcinoma, poorly differentiated. Had chemoradiation, surgery, more chemo, 3 bonus surgeries for bowel obstructions.

For the last two weeks+ I have not felt well -- very nauseas, unable to eat much. Lost 8 pounds. Having lots of bloating - basically fill up with gas, feel nauseas, then burp, feel better.

I went to my pcp since I could not get in touch with my CR surgeon. She did bloodwork and a KUB, both fine. My counts are still low, but slightly up from last time.

Now, today, I felt like I had to go to the bathroom. When I did, not much came out (this is unusual for me, as I am usually going BEFORE I get to the bathroom!) Anyway... there was blood, mucous, and a small piece of stool (?) in the toilet that had dark blood and mucous on it. I have not had any rectal bleeding like this since I was diagnosed in '05. My last colonoscopy was July 06. I had a PET scan that showed a possible area of uptake in Feb. They were going to re-check it in May - right now they felt it could be inflammation causing a false positive.

I know that is a lot of info. I am trying to remain calm, but the rectal bleeding has put me over the edge a bit.

Should I push to have the colonoscopy sooner, rather than later?

Do these sound like symptoms any of you have had indicating a recurrence? Could it be a new cancer even if I had a normal colonoscopy in July 2006??

I do have a call in to my surgeon. Hopefully he will call me back since I did tell his sec. that I was "freaking out."

Thanks in advance for any info.

Comments

  • tootsie1
    tootsie1 Member Posts: 5,044 Member
    #2
    Your sypmptoms sound similar to what I had before my diagnosis in November. If your doctor doesn't return your call, I would call back and insist that you NEED to talk to him.
  • dancininrain
    dancininrain Member Posts: 4
    #3
    Hi. I am a registered nurse who works with patients with new ileostomies/colostomies, and performs consults with patients preparing for colonoscopies. Many of our patients are previously diagnosed with colon/rectal cancer, and we always do a repeat colonoscopy for symptoms like you describe, even if the patient had a clean colonoscopy in the recent past. These symptoms do not always mean that cancer has returned, but they do warrant taking a look at.
    My mom is also recently diagnosed with stage three rectal cancer, so I sympathize with your fears, and I certainly pray for the best for you! Push to get the colonoscopy done.
  • dancininrain
    dancininrain Member Posts: 4
    #4
    Hi again. Before I freak you out too much (sorry!), I forgot to add to my previous note that the symptoms you describe could also be indicitive of a bowel obstruction, which would not be suprising given that you have had this in the recent past. Make sure you are checked out for that as well.
  • KierstenRx
    KierstenRx Member Posts: 249
    #5
    Your symptoms minus the bleeding sound similar to my bowel obstruction. I would definitely go get checked out ASAP. Could be nothing, but for your own peace of mind I would go.

    Kiersten
  • KathiM
    KathiM Member Posts: 8,028 Member
    #6
    Yup, have them check for an obstruction...if it is only partial, you can still pass some, but if there is lots of gas...this is a good indicator.

    You are right to talk to your surgeon...especially since you have had obstructions in the past....I'm past #8 ...all but the first were partial...normally there is pain with this as well...

    Keep pressing till you get an answer...don't freak out...even if it is the beast, you beat it before, you can do it again!!!

    Hugs, Kathi

Discussion Boards