How long was the time between diagnosis to surgery for you?

Posted by maya8238 @maya8238, Dec 12, 2022

Was diagnosed on 11/18 with colon cancer. My surgery is on 1/31. It’s not spread to other organs as seen in Ct scan. I’m
Just curious to how long it took for others to get a surgery date. Mine is 2 months and two weeks. I don’t know if that’s good or way too long to wait. They have nothing earlier available.

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@drkeelyowensa

Hi Everyone
I am South African and live in Johannesburg.
I had a colonoscopy on Thursday 11 August 2022 Gastroenterologist found a tumor. Biopsies were taken and the following day I was informed that it was malignant. My doctor said I needed surgery asap and he put me in touch with the top laprascopic doctor in the country. I was admitted on Monday 15th August and sent for CT scan with contrast- which was clear Bloods were pulled as well- also clear
surgery was done that afternoon. I had a right hemicolectomy.
I started preventative/precautionary chemotherapy called FOLFOX on 19 September
2022. It's been vicious and I am bed ridden for 10 days after each treatment. The Neupogen made me feel like my bones were exploding..
I'm one of the minority of people who responds very badly but I am managing my symptoms with Tramadol, ondansetron and imodium.
It's not easy but it's a small price to pay for my health.

Sending strength and courage to you all.
Dr. Keely Owen

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Hi Keely, I am living in Cape Town. How is your recovery going? I was operated on last week to remove my tumour. I can't believe it I am up and about like nothing has happened (except feeling like I've been fly-kicked in the stomach). We do have great private healthcare here. If you ever want to chat, please get in contact. All the best, Tracy x

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I was diagnosed at the start of June last year. Ileostomy done mid September last year. Surgeon injured my right kidney and I have a stent but need an op soon. Constant UTIs.

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@repac

I was diagnosed with Colectoral Cancer on Oct 26th 2022 and had emergency surgery on Oct 28th.
For over a year my family dr was telling me that the psin I was having down my rt side and into abdomin was a pulled muscle. Only twsts he did was an ultrasound of my Rt Kidney and Chest Xray. Refused to send me to another dr gor 2nd opinion.
Now he say's my hemoglobin showed I had a low chance of having cancer. Supposedly feels terrible. I had a CT scan done beginning of Feb and cancer has now spread to liver and muscle in Rt groin. I wish I had the option to go to another Dr. However our healthcare is terrible and there is a list with thousands of names of ppl waiting to get a Dr. There is so much I would like to say to him, but have to bite my tongue.

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I had no idea I had colon cancer. No symptoms except my yearly blood work came back with a hemoglobin of 8.
Doctor told me to have a colposcopy. They found cecum cancer.
Had CT and they found two nodules on my lungs. Not related to my colon cancer.
I then had a PET scan.. they lit up slightly…then a broncoscopy for biopsy.
I have 2 typical carcinoid tumors. Very small right now. Doc says these don’t spread, just grow larger in place.
So, surgery to have right colon removed scheduled for March 30.
When I recover from that, I’ll have the carcinoids resected.
I am 71 and never had anything wrong..
Now I have two cancer surgeries to look forward to!

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@menkcizmar

I went to Memorial Sloan Kettering on February 2 and had colorectal surgery on February 12…good result— stage 1, no chemo.

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I was diagnosed with Colectoral Cancer on Oct 26th 2022 and had emergency surgery on Oct 28th.
For over a year my family dr was telling me that the psin I was having down my rt side and into abdomin was a pulled muscle. Only twsts he did was an ultrasound of my Rt Kidney and Chest Xray. Refused to send me to another dr gor 2nd opinion.
Now he say's my hemoglobin showed I had a low chance of having cancer. Supposedly feels terrible. I had a CT scan done beginning of Feb and cancer has now spread to liver and muscle in Rt groin. I wish I had the option to go to another Dr. However our healthcare is terrible and there is a list with thousands of names of ppl waiting to get a Dr. There is so much I would like to say to him, but have to bite my tongue.

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My answer is CANCER doesn't wait. My hubby had bladder cancer and they wanted to send him to Emory Clinic in Atlanta, and there was a two month waiting period which I was not about to deal with. Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, took him the next week did tests, etc.

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I went to Memorial Sloan Kettering on February 2 and had colorectal surgery on February 12…good result— stage 1, no chemo.

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@lisag03

Did they say why they recommend removing section? Is there suspicious tissue? A structure? When they say sections, that means they are recommending a bowel resection, not removal. So that’s a positive. Do you have access to a Mayo Clinic or MD Anderson? I saw both and had surgery at MD Anderson because our insurance did not cover Mayo. One thing I will say is having the surgery as a planned surgery is always better than waiting and doing it on an emergent basis. Because I had a partial obstruction, I could not edit long, but still had to wait almost a month. During that time, I had to live on a very soft diet. It was nerve wracking and stressful.
Surgery is never a fun option, but I’ve had multiple surgeries and the recovery from the planned ones has always been easier than the ones done as emergency.

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Hello
Thank you for taking the time to respond. I see My Dr this week and he will go over my tests. He has a scan scheduled and I assume additional blood work. He only mentioned things were not in good condition and that parts look as though they need to be removed and then re attached hopefully the connecting tissue is good enough to use and has no bag but will only know once they open me up.
I have the Moffit Cancer center close by and they do second opinions, so after discussing the situation with my primary and my GI, I feel I will get a 2nd opinion and go from there, but first, I need the tests and scans.

appreciate your response.
C

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@lisag03

Did they say why they recommend removing section? Is there suspicious tissue? A structure? When they say sections, that means they are recommending a bowel resection, not removal. So that’s a positive. Do you have access to a Mayo Clinic or MD Anderson? I saw both and had surgery at MD Anderson because our insurance did not cover Mayo. One thing I will say is having the surgery as a planned surgery is always better than waiting and doing it on an emergent basis. Because I had a partial obstruction, I could not edit long, but still had to wait almost a month. During that time, I had to live on a very soft diet. It was nerve wracking and stressful.
Surgery is never a fun option, but I’ve had multiple surgeries and the recovery from the planned ones has always been easier than the ones done as emergency.

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no surgery. Just checking to see if I have cancer

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@tenpro

Hello
I've finished my colonoscopy and they found sections that I'm told should be removed. I am hesitant about surgery and want to find other options if available but not neglect the chance of cancer. does anyone have a suggestion as to the best place to go for a second opinion? My doctor has no problem with me getting any additional advice, I've known him for several years and he's taking good care of me and understands why I may want a second opinion.

thanks for your information, trying to stay calm and focused on what is next.
C

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Did they say why they recommend removing section? Is there suspicious tissue? A structure? When they say sections, that means they are recommending a bowel resection, not removal. So that’s a positive. Do you have access to a Mayo Clinic or MD Anderson? I saw both and had surgery at MD Anderson because our insurance did not cover Mayo. One thing I will say is having the surgery as a planned surgery is always better than waiting and doing it on an emergent basis. Because I had a partial obstruction, I could not edit long, but still had to wait almost a month. During that time, I had to live on a very soft diet. It was nerve wracking and stressful.
Surgery is never a fun option, but I’ve had multiple surgeries and the recovery from the planned ones has always been easier than the ones done as emergency.

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@lisag03

I had my regular colonoscopy on 4/11 and I had a partially obstructing structure. There was a mass that was presumed to be cancerous. I had a CT the same day. CT revealed that whatever was blocking my sigmoid was causing the area of colon above it to be filled up (kind of like a balloon). The CT also indicated that there may be lymph node involvement. I was referred out to a surgeon and he couldn’t see me for two weeks. Two days after my colonoscopy, I started running a fever so my appt was bumped up. I felt like the first surgeon wasn’t a good fit as he just wanted to remove my entire colon ao j sought a second and then a third opinion. During this tine, i was on a soft low residue diet. My surgery waa on 5/6 so about a month out. The main reason for getting me in so quickly was because of the partial blockage and the suspected infection (there was an abscess). But as mentioned above, colon cancer is slow growing. I had a colonoscopy 14 months prior to diagnosis so it had to have been missed before. Ideally, you want to be in the best possible condition for surgery so your body can recover. I loaded up on protein (shakes and eggs ) and was very healthy.

Your team should always be focused on what’s best for you, and if they felt it would adversely affect you to wait, they would bump you up.

Try not to stress about it as stress can really cause negative effects on your. Body!

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Hello
I've finished my colonoscopy and they found sections that I'm told should be removed. I am hesitant about surgery and want to find other options if available but not neglect the chance of cancer. does anyone have a suggestion as to the best place to go for a second opinion? My doctor has no problem with me getting any additional advice, I've known him for several years and he's taking good care of me and understands why I may want a second opinion.

thanks for your information, trying to stay calm and focused on what is next.
C

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