@dbchip is there a specific reason why you don’t want to get a colonoscopy? For most people it is just the prep procedure that turns them off having another colonoscopy.

I have had a few over the years and dreaded them because I couldn’t stand the thought of having to drink that jug of prep! I hated that stuff - could never finish the entire jug, and would throw up half way through. Then one gastroenterologist prescribed Pico Salax and prep day was a breeze compared to the previous.

Perhaps you could ask your gastroenterologist to prescribe Pico Salax as your prep. It consists of two small sachets of orange flavoured powder, each drunk down dissolved in about four ounces of water. During the day you can drink as many liquids, and Jello, of your choice (except anything red, blue or purple). Now I refuse to have a colonoscopy unless the gastroenterologist prescribes Pico Salax! It is the easiest prep I have ever taken! The colonoscopy itself, as you might know is the easy part because you are sedated.

Some doctors tell you straight up not to do Cologuard if you have hemorrhoids. The latter may be the cause of the blood that the Cologuard has picked up on, not a cancerous polyp. Don't stress yourself out. Get the colonoscopy and find out for sure.

I have had routine colonoscopies and this was my third one after also feeling like I was having a dairy and gluten intolerance. For your peace of mind get the colonoscopy. I had to reschedule due to throwing up the prep but glad I went as they found a tumor. I don’t have experience with the at home test but glad I went and it was found relatively early.

I had my second colonoscopy done about a year ago, as well as an upper endoscopy after a few episodes of trouble swallowing food. My biggest issue with a colonoscopy is the prep, that stuff that they make you drink is vomitable.
The first time I didn't drink enough of it to "do the job" properly, so we had to reschedule the procedure. The second time I managed to gag it down, and the procedure went fine. They removed some polups, but they were all benign. This was about 6 years ago.
When my doctor said I was due for another colonoscopy, he said he'd check me out "top to bottom" at the same time. Great.
I asked him if there was any other way to prep for the test other than that liquid, and believe it or not, they now have one where you take a dozen pills with a quart of water the day before, and the morning of the procedure. This was a piece of cake compared to that other vile liquid.
Ask your doctor for this prep method from now on.

My colorectal surgeon/doctor prescribed a medication consisting of 12 (prescription) tablets and plenty of water during the evening before the colonoscopy. He gave me sedation and I felt nothing/no pain or worry before the colonoscopy. The last thing I remember right before the colonoscopy was the doctor saying "Have a nice nap." And I did. Woke up, feeling good.

I would get an appointment with your Gastroenterologist.
As for me, I have to get them every five years. I was told to throw the mail in test kits in the garbage because they aren’t reliable.

MOJO

Hi,
I have had 4 top to bottoms and each time the medication to evacuate the bowels is worse than the procedure. I did all 4 without sedatives and can only say after the last one, no more. I'll be taking the sedative in future, the last one was a ripper, literally and caused excrusiating pain when the stomach contents got into the wound. I happen to be fill of polyps from top to bottom and have had a piles opp many years ago. I have had a different Dr do the procedure each time and it becomes interesting with the varied opinions I have gotten, from cancerous to nothing of interest found and still nothing thankfully. The first few times it was interesting getting to see, feeeel and hear it all while discussing it with the Doc, obviously not the throat ones! I make sure to take an antihistomine before the procedure as the first one I had a blocked nose and ended up with the hefty nurse trying to hold me down from my bucking and twisting. You gotta breathe.
Cheers

I just had my colonscopy on Wed. I always did the terrible drink with mirolax and ducolax pills. My one question has anyone experienced stomach discomfort for a few days? I do have gastritis and thought the prep might have caused this discomfort. Other then this l have no other issues. I've already went to the bathroom with no problem. No pain or blood.

No first hand knowledge here but I hope people read your experience...it is so common...the stress of the positive results of Cologuard is just not worth it. Just get the Colonoscopy and know what is what and if there are polyps they are painlessly removed.

Hi, @dbchip. This may sound like a downer, but I'm trusting it will be a message of hope. Basically the worst I could have imagined occurred after my abnormal result from the Cologard DNA stool test, but now everything is all right.

My primary care doctor referred me for a colonoscopy. I was concerned at that point, but my doctor seemed to think it was likely something benign that was no big deal. My husband also is really big on not spending energy and time worrying about theoreticals, so I did not spend a lot of time worrying precolonoscopy. I did my colonoscopy pretty promptly after the stool DNA test.

I got my colonoscopy results back on a Friday afternoon, so it was not surprising that no one interpreted them for me over the weekend. I do not fully understand pathology or radiology results. These medical professionals just speak their own language. So I was reading a lot of jargon in my patient portal, one sentence of which made it look like I could have cancer. My husband did not fully understand it, either, and thought maybe it was saying I had some kind of marker for cancer. It was a little bit scary.

Well, I learned that Monday I did have cancer, a neuroendocrine tumor found alongside a couple of polyps. That was super surprising to me, especially as this cancer is rare. My doctors launched a series of different types of imaging and testing to find out if there was any residual tumor. My tumor was found in late July 2023, and I spent a lot of time going to the doctor that fall.

Long story short, the doctors learned that the colonoscopy had gotten all trace of cancer out of my body. I had a bit of residual trauma, I'd say, from the whole experience and the scanxiety people talk about (in one scan, I had tears flowing down my cheeks on both sides the whole time). But in a couple months that was all kind of a distant memory, and I've been perfectly normal since.

dbchip, have you had the colonoscopy? If so, what did they find?