GREETINGS!

zenmonk
zenmonk Member Posts: 198
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
Hi,

Just joined this site and found it useful in about the first thirty seconds.

Stage 1 rectal tumor removed with neg margins. Dr. said " your good to go".
Stage 4 cancer mets to liver appeared in Jan. 5 months of chemo then liver resection and the fight goes on. All tumors from liver were removed with neg margins. All scans currently clear. I wish my brain was as clear. Not sure what to think at this point. Am I cured. Will it come back. If it comes back will it beat me this time. I guess I am at the best point I could possible be at right now but still feel apprhension. Great Site.

Comments

  • TLG320
    TLG320 Member Posts: 167
    #2
    Welcome
    Welcome and sorry you have a reason to be here. I'm new to this site myself, but have found it to be so incredibly helpful these past few weeks following my husband's diagnosis. He's having surgery on Nov. 9th and what happens after that is yet to be determined.

    You'll find everyone on this board to be so kind, helpful and welcoming.

    Best wishes and you're in my prayers,
    Tashina
  • luv3jay
    luv3jay Member Posts: 533 Member
    #3
    WOW...what a devastating
    WOW...what a devastating blow! To go from Stage 1 to Stage 4 so quickly! I'm sure you have so many questions and your mind is just spinning right now. Unfortunately, no one can answer the question "will it come back"...I wish there was an answer for that. All you can do is keeping hoping for good scans. As far as being cured...you won't be considered "cured", until you reach the 5 year mark with no evidence of disease. I suspect your doctor, at this point will want to keep check on you maybe every 3 or 4 months or so if you're not on maintenance chemo. I can't imagine that your doc is just "letting you go" because you had clear margins and one good scan. Whatever the case may be, even if your doctor isn't staying on top of it, make sure that YOU are. Cancer is a sneaky little monster and will come back and strike at anytime, so you want to make sure you are ready to attack if it decides to come back. Which it has already proven once that it can and will. Keep us posted on your progress and welcome to our little world. We hate to welcome new members here, but this is a great place for you to keep hope alive! And if you can't, we're here to help you!

    -Sheri
  • dorookie
    dorookie Member Posts: 1,731 Member
    #4
    You are not alone
    I feel we are in the same shoes as well as others. Its hard to continue on after you get the all clear. Its like what now? Do I hold my breath until the next test? I have to admit I find myself thinking about cancer coming back way more than I should, I would like to find a way not to, maybe because my all clear is new and I did have it come back on me once, I just dont know, nor do I have the answer for you, but just wanted to say your not alone.

    I just pray that each day gets better and that God gives me a little more peace each day. As for being cured, people say if you go 5 years without it coming back then you are cured, others say once you have cancer you always have it, I personnally dont care what you call it, as long as it doesnt come back, then I am ok with that. I am sorry if I am rambling, I have been thinking along the lines of your post for several days now and really dont know how to deal with this issue myself.

    God Bless
    Beth
  • just4Brooks
    just4Brooks Member Posts: 980 Member
    #5
    Hello, and welcome to the
    Hello, and welcome to the board. My name is Brooks and I have stage 3 rectal cancer. I have went through 6 ½ weeks of chemo and radiation and then on August 13 surgery to remove the tumor. Surgery went great and the tumor showed NO signs of cancer left from the treatments. Now I’m at home recovering from the surgery and have been through 4 out of 9 more treatments on chemo. I don’t think cancer ever really goes away. It's in the back of our minds all the time. I hope to see that 5 year mark. But just in case I'm living for today (wink).

    Life is funny sometimes
    Brooks
  • coloCan
    coloCan Member Posts: 1,944 Member
    #6
    Feel the same way:
    Though I have not completed my treatment yet ( postop chemo on hold due to port problem)and tho I've been told everything has been removed as a result of preop chemo/rad and then colostomy, I'm still concerned that once you've had this, you're more susceptible (sp?)to recurrence or stuff showing up elsewhere(liver, lungs).I think I'll always be looking over my shoulder. Don';t know if thats good or bad and tho I try to live for now more than I used to thats one way how all this has affected me. Always considered myself a realist....I don't know, this is just how I feel now...Steve
  • Buzzard
    Buzzard Member Posts: 3,043 Member
    #7
    coloCan said:

    Feel the same way:
    Though I have not completed my treatment yet ( postop chemo on hold due to port problem)and tho I've been told everything has been removed as a result of preop chemo/rad and then colostomy, I'm still concerned that once you've had this, you're more susceptible (sp?)to recurrence or stuff showing up elsewhere(liver, lungs).I think I'll always be looking over my shoulder. Don';t know if thats good or bad and tho I try to live for now more than I used to thats one way how all this has affected me. Always considered myself a realist....I don't know, this is just how I feel now...Steve

    You'll always look over your shoulder.......
    but the information that you have regarding what to look for, what to sidestep, what to drop and what to add. The different regimens that you learn in here during treatment that you have to use as an arsenal against it if it ever returns, should leave you with a feeling of relief, or at least enough relief to know that life can be resumed with as normal functionality as applicable in each ones circumstance. Take the small wins and use those to further deter the feeling of the black cloud over your head. Its not a cloud anymore, its someone to look over you and get you back on the road to living. The people around you deserve to see the smile that use to be there on your face, and it should be a lot larger now than it was before treatment...yes there is a chance for re occurence, yes there is a chance of it coming back, and yes there is a chance of getting killed by an automobile as was Johns neighbor and friend at 19 years of age (God Rest her soul), you simply have to let it go and enjoy what you have now, which is life, and as a whole is a lot better than what you were expecting....Live,Love, and Laugh...(borrowed that saying from someone else)...Now Big Smiles and the absolute feel of Freedom ....Go out and have a ball.........I am......and don't waste another thought about it, its out of your hands...............Buzzard
  • coloCan
    coloCan Member Posts: 1,944 Member
    #8
    Buzzard said:

    You'll always look over your shoulder.......
    but the information that you have regarding what to look for, what to sidestep, what to drop and what to add. The different regimens that you learn in here during treatment that you have to use as an arsenal against it if it ever returns, should leave you with a feeling of relief, or at least enough relief to know that life can be resumed with as normal functionality as applicable in each ones circumstance. Take the small wins and use those to further deter the feeling of the black cloud over your head. Its not a cloud anymore, its someone to look over you and get you back on the road to living. The people around you deserve to see the smile that use to be there on your face, and it should be a lot larger now than it was before treatment...yes there is a chance for re occurence, yes there is a chance of it coming back, and yes there is a chance of getting killed by an automobile as was Johns neighbor and friend at 19 years of age (God Rest her soul), you simply have to let it go and enjoy what you have now, which is life, and as a whole is a lot better than what you were expecting....Live,Love, and Laugh...(borrowed that saying from someone else)...Now Big Smiles and the absolute feel of Freedom ....Go out and have a ball.........I am......and don't waste another thought about it, its out of your hands...............Buzzard

    Short and Sweet:
    You're right, Clift.....(tho at times di8fficult),,,,,Steve
  • dianetavegia
    dianetavegia Member Posts: 1,942 Member
    #9
    Zen Monk
    How long was it between Stage I and Stage IV?

    Sorry to hear what you're going through. God Bless,
    Diane
  • zenmonk
    zenmonk Member Posts: 198
    #10
    dianetavegia said:

    Zen Monk
    How long was it between Stage I and Stage IV?

    Sorry to hear what you're going through. God Bless,
    Diane

    stage 1 to 4 timeline
    Hi dianetevegia,

    It was about 11 months from the time I was told I was good to go till the time I had the mets found in my liver.
  • shrevebud
    shrevebud Member Posts: 105
    #11
    Hi and welcome. Sorry to hear that your disease progressed. That's unfortunate and I imagine difficult to understand. I am stage IV CC and have been fighting it for almost 3 years now. I haven't given up hope - hope keeps us going and have found there are a lot of good people on this site to support you during the times ahead. Write me if you need someone to talk with. Take care. Roy

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