So You're Saying There's a Chance!

Well, the day finally arrived and I was seen by a few doctors at UAB. What an awesome place! The staff was incredible and things went very smoothly. The first thing I had done was a CT scan. The tumor is approximately 4 x 2 cm. There are some lymph nodes in the general area that appear enlarged, but no indication that it has spread through the larger lymph system.

Before I tell you about doctors, I want to give my shout out to nurses. I love social workers very much and will always have my heart in that profession. However, nurses are right up there when it comes to being in a wonderful profession. I have always liked nurses and I am blessed that the people in that profession are dedicated to helping you understand procedures, navigate the system, and help you heal! THANK YOU NURSES!!!! I will probably post more about this in the coming months.

The first doctor I saw was the medical oncologist who was very upbeat and covered alot of information with us. He said that he is normally aggressive in his treatment philosophies and said that he would probably be more so with me, given my age and general health. He scheduled for me to have an endoscopic ultrasound of the tumor area to assess the tumor and surrounding areas more closely. The ultrasound will also assist in determining which medical treatment regimen he chooses. He is pretty certain that he will use a combination of two chemo drugs for his part of the treatment.

The next doctor I saw was a radiation oncologist. He informed us about general radiation treatment and we discussed the consequences on my reproductive system. He mentioned that saving sperm would be something for us to consider (more about that later). He also stated that after the ultrasound that I would begin radiation treatment daily for about six weeks. This will start the same week as the chemo and they will be combined as part of the overall treatment regimen.

The final doctor I saw was a surgeon. This was the visit that I was anxious about. I was also interested in getting a second opinion about my options. He gave me a 50-50 chance of being reconnected after healing from surgery. He informed us about the nature of colon and rectal tumors. (IF YOU ARE EATING OR HAVE A LIGHT STOMACH...YOU ARE WARNED!) The initial assessment was that my entire rectum would need to be surgically removed. This is due to there not being much tissue to work with near your anus to re-attach the colon. Without that needed tissue and muscle at the end of the sphincter, you have no bowel control. Tumors grow off of polyps in your colon and rectal walls. The have a stem and then balloon out similar to a tree. For doctors who do not deal with rectal cancer all day (God bless the ones that do!), when they assess the tumor size they are generally only assessing the ballooned portion of the tumor. In my case, this doctor's assessment left him with the impression that the covered area of the rectum wall (were the stem begins) is nowhere near as large as the ballooned portion. In any case, 50-50 is pretty good in my opinion. But there are still plenty of quality of life questions to be answered (i.e. give me a bag over no control of bowels).

So, that is where we stand. We go tomorrow to meet with a reproductive doctor and discuss options for saving sperm ahead of chemo and radiation. I will have my ultrasound done on Tuesday Sept. 4 and will probably begin chemo and radiation the following Thursday at the earliest (could be the following week though). Surgery is still about three months out.

Keep us in your thoughts and prayers and remember the blessings that God has bestowed upon you. He certainly has showered me with them over the past week!

Peace
Josh