Port removal

7 weeks post
After my first follow-up PET, 7 weeks out.

7 weeks post
After my first follow-up PET, 7 weeks out.

Angela_K said:

7 weeks post
After my first follow-up PET, 7 weeks out.

Angela, Port removal
Okay Angela, lol, I still have mine because I had pre cancerous polyps in the colon and after my next coloscopy in April of 2012 is clear I will have it removed at that time.

Angela_K said:

Oooooops
Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. And sorry.

Angela
lol Thats happened to me too.

z said:

Azannie
Yes, they want to make sure and then you won't have to deal with it again. I just have mine because of my pre cancerous polyps and didn't want to have to have it put back in. I think I will be fine at my next colonoscopy, so they could remove it them.

port removal
Had my last chemo in late Oct. and had my port out in March for my B-day

RoseC said:

Another Victory
Yes, I agree. I couldn't wait to get that thing out. Not that it hurt or anything - I just wanted it OUT.

Oh, and I didn't mean to say the external SKIN had adhered to the port. It didn't. What attached to it was internal. I don't know the word for what it was, but it was the stuff that attacks foreign entities inside your body. Maybe someone can help me with the right terminology? Anyway, taking it out didn't hurt - it left a small depression in that area (which I still have) but it's fine, doesn't bother me at all.

"Deportation"
Having my port out was not a big deal. It was much easier than when they put it in. Both procedures were done in the radiology dept. of the hospital by an interventional radiologist. I had no problems either time, just a little soreness.

AZANNIE said:

mp327
I like the deportation term. Have you ever considered writing a book about the ins and outs of anal cancer? Seriously, you have a wealth of information about the subject with helpful hints and suggestions. Before I started treatment, I attended a one on one "chemo class" with one of the chemo nurses. I was given a packet of information about chemo and what to expect. However, radiation was a different story. Perhaps if I had gone to a cancer treatment facility (Mayo, MD Anderson, etc) things might have been different. My treatment was kind of al a carte, but apparently it worked!

Ann

Hi Ann!
That's very sweet of you to say. No, I've never considered writing a book about anal cancer, but I have considered writing a book about my life someday. Most of what I know about this cancer and how to deal with it I learned from other survivors, so it's impossible for me to take any credit.

I do think that many people who are newly diagnosed with anal cancer are woefully uninformed about the treatment and how to deal with side effects. I know that's how I felt--I really wasn't prepared for the magnitude of all the issues I dealt with during that time. Sadly, at the time of my treatment, I was not a part of any support website such as this one, so I went it alone for the most part. The doctors and nurses, as helpful as they try to be, do not have the knowledge that someone who's actually been through this has. That's why this support group is so very valuable to so many. I think most would agree, radiation is the "evil twin," if you will. I had no idea I would get so burned.

But the good news is, I am thriving at the 3-year post-treatment mark and it sounds like you are doing well too! There are many success stories. It's just hard to believe that when one is in the middle of this brutal treatment.