In September of 2023 I was diagnosed with anal cancer. I had been seeing the PA at the gastroenterologist’s office. She was treating what I thought were hemorrhoids. The pain was getting worse day by day. It got to the point where I could barely sit. I said this is enough. I need a colostomy. When I woke from the procedure the doctor was standing over me looking pretty guilty. I had a large tumor. It was caused by the HPV virus. I was angry. While they were prescribing creams the tumor was growing. I wasted so much time. I had 6 weeks of chemo and radiation. The radiation burned my skin so badly there were days when I could only wear a robe. Worse than that, I was left with fecal incontinence. I had to wear a heavy pad all the time. I was either in the bathroom or looking for one. The pain from the tumor stopped after the first week of treatment. I was told that the treatment continues to work even after it is stopped. That’s exactly what happened. I wasn’t declared cancer free till almost 9 months later. Due to the damage to my sphincter muscle, I had an ostomy. The surgery was done at Mayo Clinic in Florida. Dr. Luca Stocchi did the surgery. Best doctor ever! It’s almost a year since that day. I’ve gotten my life back. I’m having my first colonoscopy with my stoma next month. The nerves are starting. The fear of cancer returning is real. I’m trying to take one day at a time. Sometimes it’s not so easy.