Worried this might be anal cancer

Samclembeau, Thank you for your post! Galleri blood test detected anal cancer markers and HPV16 in early February 2025 (now confirmed via HMO biopsy). My Medicare HMO feels like my cancer is slow growing and is not urgent, so I’m awaiting surgery and testing for staging at end of march 2025. I’m in SF Bay Area and I’m amazed that there are 4 proton radiation centers in SoCal but not a single one in our tech heavy area. I’m planning 2nd opinion for post surgery treatment. I’m guessing that I will need to self pay to go outside of my Medicare HMO for proton treatment in SoCal. I would love to hear more about your experience, if you have time. I have lots of planning to do while waiting for surgery and staging because I am primary caretaker for my life partner who has lots of health problems, including severe dementia. I need to plan for his care too.

My goodness you have a lot going on! I appreciate your response.

So glad you took measures to figure out what was causing your issues. Best wishes with your upcoming procedure and treatment. And, with finding care for your partner. That is an incredibly daunting task. I can’t imagine.

Since my post upthread about my digestive problems, I did get a second anoscopy, a second colonoscopy and a colon biopsy, which were normal. And, my constipation has mostly resolved. I’m not taking anything, including Miralax, right now. So, I’m very grateful. I do appreciate the tip about the blood test, though. I will keep it in mind.

You were indeed lucky to have caught things early! Please post your progress in treatment. It sounds very promising! Thanks again.

Thanks for reply Rio. Ongoing testing seems to be critical as cancer-causing hpv16 virus is not curable. I’m going crazy researching while waiting for surgery, ct and mri in a few weeks. I requested a Pap smear from my HMO as hpv16 frequently causes cervical (and other cancers). I’m 74 and was advised over 10 years ago that no further gynecologist exams were needed as I had 2 negative hpv tests and 2 exams with no precancerous cell changes. Now I have hpv16 and rare anal cancer??? I am primary caretaker for my life partner of nearly 50 years so I wonder if hpv16 lies dormant and undetectable until it causes cancerous cell changes. More research is needed on my part. Our life survival plans will depend on lining up all of the right kinds of tests for the rest of our lives. My goal is to feel as good as I can for as long as I can and to continue to plan potential next steps, if needed. 😊 best wishes for your test results.

Thank you for responding. By this time I should know what kind of radiation I had. I don’t. I am seeing my radiologist this week and will ask. I am having my MRI this morning. My Ct scan was last week and results were good. I’m expecting to get good results from today’s scan. I’m looking forward to not having any tests hanging over my head for a year. Testing every six months weighs very heavily on the mind. The next step will be to fix this hernia that’s developed. It’s becoming very painful and large. Wishing you the best!

Wow Rio, sounds like you’ve been through a lot! Happy to hear that your quality of life is better now. Hernia surgery is a piece of cake compared to your prior medical treatments. Do you know if you had photon or proton radiation? I have read that proton radiation is more targeted to needed area and is less likely to damage surrounding areas. I’m having surgery soon but need to figure out next steps after surgery and staging.

Hi celia16,
If you can afford $949, consider the galleri.com blood test that detects 50 types of cancer. My nagging feeling that hemorrhoids were not causing my vague symptoms was confirmed by my galleri report that detected anal cancer markers in February 2025. Armed with the galleri report, I was able to get an anal biopsy through my Medicare HMO that confirmed anal squamous cell carcinoma and HPV16. I’m now awaiting surgery and further testing for staging. I am hopeful that I caught it early thanks to my nagging hunch and the galleri blood test. I’m a senior ex-smoker so so I would have great about my blood test investment, even if no cancer signals were detected.

i am about to start proton radiation for anal cancer caused by the hpv 16 virus.
i thought for months that i had hemorrhoids but the gyn said i needed a colonoscopy to make sure and i was lucky to get one within a couple of months.
the dr. was there when i came to and said it looked like squamous cell cancer but i had to wait for the results of the biopsy. was inconclusive. second biopsy at UCSF also inconclusive so wend to a surgeon who i had hoped would just remove it, but was on the sphincter muscle so just took a biopsy. this time it was biopsied as cancer. had pet scan that verified it as stage 2. it is usually a slow growing cancer so i thought i had time to determine how i was going to have it treated. i was wrong. the pain got much worse and felt like my rectum was closing up on me. the only way i can go to the bathroom is if i have diarrhea. so my advise, for what is is worth, is the get going as soon as possible before it gets worse. i am now at stage 3 almost stage 4. (involves 2 lymph nodes). Less than a year later.
i don't know where you are located, but have found that most institutions do only regular photon radiation for anal cancer , even if they they have proton at that hospital. i found, because of another person here on mayo clinic connect, someone that went through this and found california proton cancer center where that is all they do. they are affiliated with UCSD and Scripps.
i hope this helps you decide what to do. don't wait. it doesn't get better on its own.

@amyb5 ,

Thanks for that info.
After my intermittent anal pain, I got an appointment with the colorectal surgeon that I saw over a year ago for a thrombosed external hemorrhoid that burst on its on.( I went to her about that burst hemorrhoid and discovered it would heal on its own and it did.) She performed another anoscopy at the office visit and said it was completely normal. I explained I was afraid of cancer. She did see some internal hemorrhoids that were inflamed, but not needing treatment. She agreed with my hypothesis that my pain was proctalgia fugax.

She still wants me to get the colonoscopy, just to be cautious, plus to explore the constipation. They never have run any labs or scans. I read where a lot of people get those ordered, but I’ve been dealing with this problem for over 17 months. I don’t get it. Oh, my colonoscopy is still in April and can’t be moved up.

May I ask what symptoms you had that lead to the diagnosis? I am concerned about possibly having this with my indications. Colonoscopy not scheduled till next month

Hello! I too had squamous anal cancer. It was diagnosed in 2022. I was 72 at the time. I had six weeks of chemo in pill form and radiation. I didn’t have much of an appetite and felt very tired. After the first week of treatment I could feel the tumor shrinking because the pain was abating. A couple of weeks into the radiation is when the after effects began. I was told that throat and pelvic radiation are the two most painful to tolerate. That was so true. Installing a bidet on our toilet really helped to soothe the pain. The pain was bad enough but then the fecal incontinence began. I either spent all my day in the bathroom or was looking for one. The radiation damaged my sphincter muscle. As a result of that in October of 2023 I had colostomy surgery and now have a stoma. I named her Libby because she’s liberated me from the bathroom! My quality of life has increased 100%. I have been having Ct scans and MRI every 6 months. I am awaiting an MRI on Monday. If the results are good I will be able to go a year until the next round of scans. To say it’s been a roller coaster would be putting it mildly. Hernias are very common after colostomy surgery. I unfortunately have developed one. I will probably be facing surgery to repair it in the next few months. It’s not easy but we do what we have to do.