Radiation Treatment

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80fsjuvat
80fsjuvat Member Posts: 8
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
Hi. I'm new to this site. Was diagnosed with rectal cancer Apr 06. Just completed six weeks of chemoradiation treatment to reduce the size of the tumor prior to surgery.

Scheduled for a CT scan next month to restage and see how much the tumor responded to the radiation.

Interested in hearing from someone who has gone through this treatment to get an idea of what to expect in terms of possible tumor response.

Thanks,

Mike

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  • vinny3
    vinny3 Member Posts: 928 Member
    #2
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    Hi Mike,

    I had the same treatment a year ago. There was an excellent response and it shrunk at least to about 20 % of what it originally was. The main test used to determine the tumor size itself was a rectal ultrasound. At the time then my surgeon recommended a lesser surgery- transanal excision as my tumor was quite low in the rectum. That was done and no cancer cells were seen in the pathology specimen. Unfortunately my tumor came back and I have subsequently had an APResection with a permanent colostomy. That went very well and if I had to do it over I would have had that the first time. You may not need a colostomy if your tumor is higher in the rectum than that. But if you do it is not that bad.
    Good Luck,
    ****
  • 80fsjuvat
    80fsjuvat Member Posts: 8
    #3
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    vinny3 said:

    Hi Mike,

    I had the same treatment a year ago. There was an excellent response and it shrunk at least to about 20 % of what it originally was. The main test used to determine the tumor size itself was a rectal ultrasound. At the time then my surgeon recommended a lesser surgery- transanal excision as my tumor was quite low in the rectum. That was done and no cancer cells were seen in the pathology specimen. Unfortunately my tumor came back and I have subsequently had an APResection with a permanent colostomy. That went very well and if I had to do it over I would have had that the first time. You may not need a colostomy if your tumor is higher in the rectum than that. But if you do it is not that bad.
    Good Luck,
    ****

    ****,

    Hi. Thanks for the information. Initial CT scan showed tumor to be in upper third of rectum - 12 cm from the anal verge. During radiation treatments I had noticed sluffing of tissue when passing stool. Hopefully this is a sign of tumor shrinking.

    Thank you again for sharing your information. This is quite an overwhelming experience.

    Mike
  • lfondots63
    lfondots63 Member Posts: 818 Member
    #4
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    Hi Mike,

    I want to say welcome and sorry that we had to meet this way but happy you found us. I'm sure you will have lots of answers and want to send good vibes for the scans and treatments. Hopefully they gave you all the reactions that are possible. If you have any questions about them there are many here that can help.

    Lisa
  • 80fsjuvat
    80fsjuvat Member Posts: 8
    #5
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    lfondots63 said:

    Hi Mike,

    I want to say welcome and sorry that we had to meet this way but happy you found us. I'm sure you will have lots of answers and want to send good vibes for the scans and treatments. Hopefully they gave you all the reactions that are possible. If you have any questions about them there are many here that can help.

    Lisa

    Lisa,

    Hi. Thanks for the note and wishes. Reactions during the treatment weren't too bad - did have some diarrhea and a pretty sore bottom during the last week. System is finally settling down and bottom irritation is becoming less pronounced.

    The waiting is the hardest part now.

    Thanks,

    Mike
  • JADot
    JADot Member Posts: 709 Member
    #6
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    Hi Mike:

    It's like Lisa said, we all wish that we've met under different circumstances. But hey, if info, help and support is what you're look for, this site is a true life line.

    Welcome to our on-line family!

    Sorry I am not much help w/ radiation side effects.

    Cheers,
    Ying
  • KathiM
    KathiM Member Posts: 8,028 Member
    #7
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    Hey, Mike, welcome (oh, how I HATE saying that, cause it means that you have met the beast!).
    I had squamous cell carcinoma in the first rectal fold. Pre-surgical chemo/rads ELIMINATED (in hindsight) the 2" tumor. I had the resection anyway, cause no one had seen this and didn't know until after the rectum and sigmoid colon were "under the microscope" that the pre-surg treatment had worked soooo well. I never had a colostomy, even tho it was low. My surgeon specialized in low rectal reenstimosis. He is a UC Irvine Med Center in Orange, CA...Dr. Stamos...1 year later, I have normal bowel function, even without my rectum!
    Hugs, Kathi
  • 80fsjuvat
    80fsjuvat Member Posts: 8
    #8
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    KathiM said:

    Hey, Mike, welcome (oh, how I HATE saying that, cause it means that you have met the beast!).
    I had squamous cell carcinoma in the first rectal fold. Pre-surgical chemo/rads ELIMINATED (in hindsight) the 2" tumor. I had the resection anyway, cause no one had seen this and didn't know until after the rectum and sigmoid colon were "under the microscope" that the pre-surg treatment had worked soooo well. I never had a colostomy, even tho it was low. My surgeon specialized in low rectal reenstimosis. He is a UC Irvine Med Center in Orange, CA...Dr. Stamos...1 year later, I have normal bowel function, even without my rectum!
    Hugs, Kathi

    Kathi,

    Hi and thanks for the note. My tumor is an adenocarcinoma which I understand is the more common type of colorectal cancer. I'm in the DC area undergoing treatment at the National Naval Medical Center at Bethesda. I appreciate your information - this will help when I meet with the surgeon.

    Mike
  • taraHK
    taraHK Member Posts: 1,952 Member
    #9
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    Hi Mike,
    I had the same diagnosis and initial treatment as you. In my case, although I had a pretty good response to the radiation (some shrinking of tumour), I still required surgery. I ended up having APR with permanent colostomy (my tumour was very low).

    Of course, it is wonderful if one can avoid surgery at all (ie have a 'complete response'). I have certainly heard of cases like this. However, I'd want to discuss very carefully with my doctors. I err towards the conservative side on these matters!

    Yes, the waiting is hard. I took some satisfaction in knowing that the radiation was still 'working' in the several weeks after I finished.

    Good luck and best wishes -- please let us know the results of your CT scan and keep us posted on your progress.
  • 80fsjuvat
    80fsjuvat Member Posts: 8
    #10
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    taraHK said:

    Hi Mike,
    I had the same diagnosis and initial treatment as you. In my case, although I had a pretty good response to the radiation (some shrinking of tumour), I still required surgery. I ended up having APR with permanent colostomy (my tumour was very low).

    Of course, it is wonderful if one can avoid surgery at all (ie have a 'complete response'). I have certainly heard of cases like this. However, I'd want to discuss very carefully with my doctors. I err towards the conservative side on these matters!

    Yes, the waiting is hard. I took some satisfaction in knowing that the radiation was still 'working' in the several weeks after I finished.

    Good luck and best wishes -- please let us know the results of your CT scan and keep us posted on your progress.

    Tara,

    Hi. Thanks for the words and the advice. Will update on results of CT scan. Thanks for your wishes.

    Mike
  • debralla
    debralla Member Posts: 203 Member
    #11
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    80fsjuvat said:

    Tara,

    Hi. Thanks for the words and the advice. Will update on results of CT scan. Thanks for your wishes.

    Mike

    Hello Mike .
    Just wanted to say Hello and welcome you to the site .
    Bethesda is a Great Hospital .. I am being seen at Brooks Army Med . My Husband is Active duty Navy .
    This site has really helped me out a lot !!If you have any questions what so ever Just ask there is always someone that will have a answer for you . Or even if you are just having a bad day and want to vent We are here for that too.
    I also sent you a email.
    Take Care and God Bless
    Debra
  • 80fsjuvat
    80fsjuvat Member Posts: 8
    #12
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    debralla said:

    Hello Mike .
    Just wanted to say Hello and welcome you to the site .
    Bethesda is a Great Hospital .. I am being seen at Brooks Army Med . My Husband is Active duty Navy .
    This site has really helped me out a lot !!If you have any questions what so ever Just ask there is always someone that will have a answer for you . Or even if you are just having a bad day and want to vent We are here for that too.
    I also sent you a email.
    Take Care and God Bless
    Debra

    Debra,

    Hello and thanks for the words regarding Bethesda. I sent you an email as well.

    Take Care,

    Mike
  • nana98
    nana98 Member Posts: 31
    #13
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    Hi Mike..
    I was diagnosed March 06 and went through the same treatment.. I too had very little side effects from the chemo/radiation. My surgery is scheduled at the University of Virginia on July 7th. I don't know if the tumor shrunk or not because my surgeon feels that the surgery would be necessary anyway..I wish I did know if it shrunk because the not knowing is the hard part but, according to the surgeon, I am stage III, my tumor is 4cm in and approximately 4cm big.. I had a CT scan done right away and according to those results the cancer has not spread...Thank God...Please let me know how you make out with the second scan.. My prayers are with you.
    Karen
  • 80fsjuvat
    80fsjuvat Member Posts: 8
    #14
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    nana98 said:

    Hi Mike..
    I was diagnosed March 06 and went through the same treatment.. I too had very little side effects from the chemo/radiation. My surgery is scheduled at the University of Virginia on July 7th. I don't know if the tumor shrunk or not because my surgeon feels that the surgery would be necessary anyway..I wish I did know if it shrunk because the not knowing is the hard part but, according to the surgeon, I am stage III, my tumor is 4cm in and approximately 4cm big.. I had a CT scan done right away and according to those results the cancer has not spread...Thank God...Please let me know how you make out with the second scan.. My prayers are with you.
    Karen

    Karen,

    Hi. Copy that not knowing is the hard part. I hope you have a positve response to the radiation treatments and that your surgery goes well.

    I don't see the surgeon again until July 10 so no date yet for the operation. I finsihed radiation treatment on June 19 so I'm expecting the surgery will not be before mid-July.

    My prayers are with you as well.

    Mike

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