First colonoscopy since April 2017 when I was diagnosed

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  • Happy@50
    Happy@50 Member Posts: 1
    edited July 2018 #22
    I had a mass remove from my colon along with 40 lymph nodes

    so out of the 40 lymph nodes removed 3 show signs of cancer . Going next week to find out what kind of treatment or chemo I will need . Any advice ?My doctor feels confident it was caught early . I’m in good spirits as I begin my cancer journey.

  • Annabelle41415
    Annabelle41415 Member Posts: 6,742 Member
    #23
    Happy@50 said:

    I had a mass remove from my colon along with 40 lymph nodes

    so out of the 40 lymph nodes removed 3 show signs of cancer . Going next week to find out what kind of treatment or chemo I will need . Any advice ?My doctor feels confident it was caught early . I’m in good spirits as I begin my cancer journey.

    Happy

    Sorry that you have had a bad report.  I'm wishing you the best at the doctor's next week and the appointments that await you.  Please start a new thread to introduce yourself and your recent diagnosis and a little history.  I'm glad that you are preparing for moving forward.  Let us know how things are going and if you have further questions.

    Kim

  • SophDan2
    SophDan2 Member Posts: 150 Member
    #24
    Happy@50 said:

    I had a mass remove from my colon along with 40 lymph nodes

    so out of the 40 lymph nodes removed 3 show signs of cancer . Going next week to find out what kind of treatment or chemo I will need . Any advice ?My doctor feels confident it was caught early . I’m in good spirits as I begin my cancer journey.

    Hi Happy

    It is my understanding that when 3 or less lymph nodes are found to be cancerous the stage would be Stage 3B. I had 6 cancerous lymph nodes, so I was at Stage 3C. The biggest difference, from what my oncologist told me, is that 3B only requires 3 months of treatment, while 3C required 6 months of treatment. If you find that to be the case with your treatments, you are in good shape. The treament might be what I had, which was called Folfox 5FU (3 drug cocktail). Oxaliplatin is the most intense of the 3 drugs, but if you only have to tolerate it for 3 months, you can do it! You would experience extreme sensitivity to cold, slight neuropathy and nausea, all of which can be tolerated and managed.

    I agree with your doctor, you caught it early (enough anyway).

    You came to the right place at the right time; the folks I met on this forum were and are so helpful. Someday you'll pay it forward to others in your current situation.

  • SandiaBuddy
    SandiaBuddy Member Posts: 1,381 Member
    #25
    Happy@50 said:

    I had a mass remove from my colon along with 40 lymph nodes

    so out of the 40 lymph nodes removed 3 show signs of cancer . Going next week to find out what kind of treatment or chemo I will need . Any advice ?My doctor feels confident it was caught early . I’m in good spirits as I begin my cancer journey.

    Same boat

    I was in almost exactly the same boat a bit more than a year ago.  It is likely your doctor will recommend chemo.  If I were in your shoes I would carefully question the survival benefit of the chemo and the potential side effects.  What you do is a highly personal decision.  I did not do well on the chemo and if I were to do it over again, I would decline it.  But if I had minor children or some other big committment in life, I would likely do everything possible to survive.  You might also want to review posts about non-chemo strategies to optimize your odds of "disease-free survival."  Sorry that you are here and best of luck to you in your treatment decisions.

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