anal cancer

janf

I just read through this entire thread with Cinderthistle, Mak1970 kittpugh, sandlynn, tcvetnic and indianamatt. Everyones story is a little different but there are so many common threads, thank you to everyone for sharing. I am learning so much. I had the CAT scan yesterday and am so releived - 1. FDG uptake in the anal canal region (maximum SUV 5.51), possibly representing the known primary neoplasm. 2. No evidence of FDG-avid metastatic disease. I don’t know how lucky one can get. I feel blessed, but of course not looking forward to the treatment. I will get a port on March 13 and believe chemo will start on March 16. I will get 5-FU and mitomycin by a pump I’ll wear home for 4 days, then will have it again at toward the end of the treatment. I’ll have the radiation for 28 or 33 days. 5 days a week. I live alone and am trying to figure out if I am going to need help. The radiologist indicated at some point i would not be able to drive myself. Fortunately the cancer center is only 5 minutes away. I’ve compiled lists of questions and shopping lists from what you have all shared. I just read in one of the posts something that has me worried (one of a 100 things!), someone spoke about shaky hand. I’m an artist and hoped to be able to continue to paint when I felt like it through this ordeal. So a shaky hand is worrisome! On the other hand my work is pretty tight and a shaky hand might assist me in loosening up. …. Since they were able to move my PET scan up a month I was hoping everything would be moved up but it doesn’t appear so. One other thing I’m grateful for is the Cancer Center, Hospital, and my primary group are all on MYCHART so I can ask questions, have all my appts. and see test results all in one place. In case some of you didn’t hear the beginning of my story, I had my 5 year colonoscopy, they always seem to take off a polyp but I was dumbfounded when the dr said as I was waking up, you have cancer. Anal cancer. I had no symptoms, what if my next colonoscopy was not for 2 more years or 4 more years. … At any rate I’m forever grateful. Other than the port I don’t expect to have any news next week so you won’t hear from me again until I get the chemo. Again thanks to you all!

kittpugh

Dear Janf: That's amazing that you managed to read through all of our threads! I know I can get a little verbose, so I hope you were able to skim through my duplications of what I said to Cinderthistle and now yourself. Your post will definitely teach me more than I know, as I have no idea what FDG uptake, maximum SUV 5.51 is. The only word I recognized was metastatic, the spreadability of cancer to other parts of the body, but thank God, in your case this hasn't happened. I love the fact that you are an artist! What a wonderful outlet for the emotions - when you feel up to expressing yourself - as the Spirit moves you as they say. My interests turn to learning to play a musical instrument, which saddly hasn't born fruit even after all these years. Lol. The best I can do is play my iPod. But I did curate a playlist that became music therapy throughout Treatment. And that was worth every minute spent doing that. Yes, Cinderthistle did touch on having "shaky hands" as a side effect of the Chemotherapy. She really suffered those side effects terribly and it seemed to be the thing which she couldn't get passed. But we respond as individuals to Treatment. I can't stress that enough. I also deeply feel that our journey through Treatment deserves outside helps from anyone willing to offer it, whether it is to make a meal, or drive us to the clinic, or clean the eaves as my sister did for me, or just sitting and watching TV with us while we drift off to sleep on the sofa. You mentioned having a pump for Chemo at the start and at the end of the 28-33 days of Radiation. I know that mak1970 knows about Chemotherapy pumps. I know more about the Radiation side of Treatment. To that end I'm here whenever you want to chat. God be with you Jan.