How was yours diagnosed?

Terry , I was diagnosed with anal cancer stage2 after growth was removed from my anus. April 2023. My treatment was 28 days of chemo and RT. Had a PET scan in November ,I am now cancer free.
My chemo was oral except for 2 infusions day 1 and 28. RT was labor intensive. Trying to have an empty bowel and a full bladder for RT was a day full of challenges.
After 28 days of RT cumulative effects set in. Intense swelling of the genitalia and anus. I experienced 2 weeks when it was necessary to take pain medication.
Expect to be reclining during this period. Sitting is very difficult.
Just like child birth when you get a cancer free diagnosis it was all worth it. Praying for you and a speedy recovery.

Hi @terrymayo50, you may also be interested in connecting with other members who have anal cancer in this discussion:
- Anyone else have Anal cancer?
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/anal-cancer-1/

I am 5 year survivor, in the next couple of weeks I will find out if consider cured. That being said I had 30 rounds of radiation and 6 days of chemo, took a chemo ball home once on the beginning and at the end of radiation. I was tired, lost my hair. Some nausea. I do have long term side effects from radiation. Mainly in hip bones. I am grateful for my results and doctors I went to Ironwood Cancer Research.

If possible keep a positive attitude. Good luck and blessings

I have had anal cancer, had 2 doses of chemo and 32 radiation treatments. The worst thing that I experienced was the immunotherapy (Keytruda). Every side effect possible, I had. It was a horrible time, rashes, swelling, diarrhea, etc. I lost 25 lbs. I found out last Dec 14, and today I am cancer free, so the suffering was worth it.

Hi my name is Tina, and I was recently diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma anal cancer. I am a 53 year old female. Over the last two years I had some anal itching but didn't think anything of it. I had recently went through surgery for a total thyroid ectomy and the pain medication caused me to become constipated, which in that time is when I noticed that I had a huge tumor protruding in the vaginal area. I went to see the doctor to find out it was not in the vaginal area but it was in the rectal area. CT scans and MRI revealed a mass and also a lymph node that was enlarged. They did a colonoscopy and found the mass did a biopsy and it was then revealed to be staged 2 squamous cell carcinoma anal cancer. I was ordered to do two rounds of chemotherapy one in the beginning of treatment and another at the fifth week I was given two different medication one was given in the office the other was put on a pump that I went home with for 5 days. I have finished both rounds of chemotherapy and I am now finishing my radiation. As I started the beginning of the 6th week of radiation they had to stop and give me a week's break because I was burned so badly down in that area that I could not handle any more radiation. I was ordered 30 plus session of radiation, which is a total of seven whole weeks. I still have 2 weeks left to go