Sigmoid colon resection: What to expect for recovery?

Posted by virgo1952 @virgo1952, Dec 1, 2019

It’s been 4+weeks since my resection. Found a cancerous polyp during a routine screening. Some frustration over the lack of information given by the surgeon as to what to expect afterwards. Late 60’s so I know the healing will take time. Mostly, struggling with bowel urgency/frequency and experiencing stomach pain from gas (pretty sure) is three months s realistic time frame for returning to “normal”? I’ve seen some posts that talk about two years? No further treatment so I was lucky. If anyone has had this surgery and went through or is going through the healing process, I would love to hear from you. Just kind of out there.

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Digestive Health Support Group.

Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Jul 12 7:07am

In reply to @caring1962 "My husband was diagnosed with colon cancer in October of 2024. He had surgery in December..." + (show)

Hello @caring1962 and welcome to Mayo Connect. I appreciate you sharing about your husband's journey with colon cancer. It certainly is a journey that none of us really wanted to take. Will he be having follow-up scans or other tests in the near future? You might find a new discussion on eating after digestive tract surgery helpful. Here is a link to the discussion, https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/how-do-i-eat-after-digestive-tract-surgery/.

I hope he is feeling stronger. Did he lose a lot of weight during the treatment?

caring1962 | @caring1962 | Jul 12 2:16pm

In reply to @hopeful33250 "Hello @caring1962 and welcome to Mayo Connect. I appreciate you sharing about your husband's journey with..." + (show)

Hello Teresa, thank you so much for the helpful link. My husband thankfully did not lose any weight during his chemo treatment. He has been having regular blood work and some scans, during his treatment. Now that he is done his chemo he has a CT scan scheduled soon and he will be having a DNA blood test, as opposed to a regular blood test. The dna blood test will be very telling and we hope and pray to get negative results. Other than some nerve pain to his hands and feet and being very tired (during his treatment), he has tolerated the side effects very well.
I do most of the food planning and cooking and I ensure he is eating the right kinds of food.
Once again, thank you for reaching out and I appreciate this forum for its insightfulness.

Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Jul 12 3:35pm

In reply to @caring1962 "Hello Teresa, thank you so much for the helpful link. My husband thankfully did not lose..." + (show)

I appreciate your reply, @caring1962. I understand what you mean when you say, "I appreciate this forum for its insightfulness." When I joined Connect I was facing my third surgery for a rare form of cancer and this was a lifeline for me. Cancer is not a journey that we should take alone. We need others!

I look forward to hearing from you again as your husband continues this process. Will you continue to post updates as it's convenient?

kathyoung | @kathyoung | Jul 12 6:57pm

I had a bowel resection three years ago, about one foot removed from the sigmoid colon area . I agree it takes a while and some patience.
I now take Benefibre every night and 2 stool softeners. I found adding the stool softeners made a big difference. It’s worth a try.
I haven’t looked back and I’m so glad I had it done. I’m sure you will be too. Good luck

Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Jul 14 3:59pm

In reply to @kathyoung "I had a bowel resection three years ago, about one foot removed from the sigmoid colon..." + (show)

Hi Kathy,

I'm glad that you are so happy with the results of your sigmoid surgery. It's great when it all works out so well. I'd like to invite you to a new discussion group on Connect, called How Do I Eat After Digestive Tract Surgery. I'm sure you can add some helpful information for others who had had or are planning on having surgery. Here is the link,
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/how-do-i-eat-after-digestive-tract-surgery/

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