But I have made some friends here (even if I don't get to talk to them as much as I like), and I thought I should finally fess up and share.
Starting in October I started to have abdominal pains. When I had a day and night where the pain never went away, I went to the ED. The CT showed some swelling/inflammation. This led to one of those dreaded "colonoscopy" procedures...lol In late December the Colonoscopy revealed that I had a Neuroendicrine Carcinoid Tumor on the valve between the Large and Small Intestine. On the the 22nd of January, I had a small portion of my small and large intestine removed and sewn back together. They also removed lymph nodes. The tumor was about the size of a ping pong ball. Not going to break any records...LOL but it is a pretty decent size for the intestines. Pathology has shown that 11 of the 19 lymph nodes taken have tested positive for cancer. I have spent the past month recovering and in many ways I am still recovering...No energy, still some pain...get tired physically very quickly...not allowed to lift anything...etc., etc.
Now that is the bad and scary news...
How about some good news...The good news is that This is not what you would consider "colon cancer". This is a VERY rare tumor and it is VERY slow growing. I will not need chemotherapy as it does not respond in the same way to chemo as other cancers. I probably had this for years. The surgeons feel that they have removed more lymph nodes than needed and they have removed ALL of the cancer. I should be Cancer free. As far as it coming back, being very slow growing and because of it's rarity, we are probably talking 10-20 years, IF at all. In speaking with the surgeon on followup, I am feeling good about the prognosis. We have set up appointments with an oncologist. My first meeting went very well and I feel better about the prognosis. We are setting up the baseline scans. and I will have to be scanned every 6 months for a time and once a year after.
This is the scary part. It is possible the cancer has spread to an area where the original CT's did not look. I will have my baseline scans shortly. They will be more comprehensive. and IF the cancer spread to somewhere else, depending on the location, I will need chemo. Now while that is scary...The nature of this cancer makes this scenario pretty unlikely. After my talks with the Surgeon and oncologists, I think I am feeling over 90% that I am done and and cancer free. There is always just that "little bit" that hangs there until we can have definitive confirmation from the scans.
Like I said...I don't want to make to big of a deal about this. As far as cancers go...I think I am getting off pretty easy. I just felt some of you would want to know. I do appreciate any and all well wishes and prayers. They really have helped me get through the past month. But I am not trying to elicit them...I have received much from this group of people and am very thankful to have you. I look forward to many more years and I think I am getting close to becoming more involved as I was before...I need to get out of that lurker status....LOL
Pete as a person who has had cancer (prostate) I know what the back of the mind is thinking. Praying that all your test results come back negative and you get a clean bill of health.
you're a tough guy to come out of this with a positive outlook. i bet that is the number one best thing to combat illness with too. we will keep you and you're family in our thoughts.
Pete, sounds like the prognosis is a good one(as good as can be expected) Hope everything works out for you my friend. Will definitely keep you in my thoughts and don't be afraid to reach out to the Geeks if you need anything brother. :goodluck: :angel:
Pete, sorry to hear about your battle, but it sounds like you might be on the right side of this, which is awesome
Will keep you in our prayers and thoughts
Best wishes and many prayers for a positive outcome
Thanks for the replies guys...
Beeger....Yeah...the back of the mind is the toughest part so far....Even worse than the first week after the surgery...all of that pain was physical...it eventually goes away...It doesn't help when your hospital is a little too efficient and starts scheduling referrals and and such before the doc has had a chance to follow up with you...I had just gotten home, still a little time before the follow up with the surgeon...Everything I have been told to that point was... "looks good", "got everything out", and "probably don't need chemo"...I tried not too look to far forward...So no mention of the long range scanning plan, I am concentrating on what I need to do today...Next thing I know, I am getting a phone call to set up an appointment with an oncologist...THAT FREAKED ME OUT!!!! Turns out the docs all get together and discuss each and every case. The referral plan was confirmed in that meeting...but the order entry folks went ahead and scheduled as soon as they could before the doc got to talk to me that day...I get this call from an oncologist and I am thinking...OMG what changed....what happened...etc....Same thing happened with my follow up with the oncologist...no mention of chemo...and the follow up visit shows as "Return Chemo" on my appointment reminder....OMG no mention of needing chemo...and they already scheduled??? FREAKED ME OUT again!!! It was just how the office visit showed in order to grab the time slot...
Back to work this week...trying to not push it...pushed a little much MOndaya and Tuesday...But I think a Half at the office and half at home is going to work for me...ONE DAY AT A TIME....right???
Pete you will be in my prayers.
Hope everything works out. Best of luck! :goodluck:
Prayers, love and healing light to you, my friend. I love your honesty and willingness to be open, it is a great way to begin the healing process. From miles away...if there is anything that I can do to help, please ask.
Best of wishes in recovery and with a positive outcome , Pete. I too had Prostate cancer at 45 yrs old It was scary to get that diagnosis. I have been cancer free 11 years. Be positive and enjoy life!
Peter, I'm glad that you opened up to share your story with us old friends on the board. You never know what happens to friends here that just stop posting or logging in. I'm even happier that things are looking better for you at this point. We will keep you in our good thoughts and prayers for a positive outcome!
Good PSA to tell others about. While just the word Cancer gives us the squirts it's all of the maintenance and Dr. Visits that follow afterwards. Screenings are always available...being proactive is a popular term these days but for men it seems that we tend to shy away from the "icky" screenings like our Prostate ( not me...I have a 30 year old amazing Internist that I try to visit twice a year but she tells me my insurance only covers one a year....I tell her I'm just being proactive and she laughs....) or colons with that bag that you send to the screening place after you've fished out a sample...that's always fun! They run screenings as well for our arteries which is a great idea if you have heart issues that will measure the plaque in your arteries. Better to do this than have a stent put in....or triple bypass....or having your prostate yanked out of your body and other things.
Thanks Guys!!!
Cigary...Absolutely correct...I put off the GI scope for a couple of years (we were looking more for GERD than anything else)...If I hadn't, it never would have gotten as far as it did. I am lucky that I didn't wait longer. And I am lucky for what it was and that it wasn't what it could have been. I am 45 and the thought was, the magic number was 50 for colonoscopy. And I was just looking at Acid Reflux...So not a big deal....Right??? We complain about docs ordering too many tests...we say they are only covering their collective asses...But in the end, we pay a bigger price if we ignore and try to "tough it out". That is on US...not the docs.
Scans next week...keeping fingers crossed.
Good luck with the scans! The news does sound very promising, here's to hoping your clean. As the other guys said, don't hesitate to ask if you need something the group could help with.
Wow heavy stuff man...I hope all goes well best wishes :thumbsup:
Quotetvolball - 2/23/2018 1:09 PM
Best wishes and many prayers for a positive outcome
:word:
Damn sorry to hear of your health troubles Pete. Hang tough, fu$k cancer, kick its a$$ dude.
Definitely let us know how the scans come out.
I am doing well. I work half a day in the office an half a day at the house. This allows me to get into my recliner and take weight off....giving everything a break...I wouldn't be able to get a full day in without it...That said...I am a bit frustrated. I can't do much. I am not allowed to lift anything over 10 pounds...not for at least another 5 weeks.
I am walking as much as possible...and that is the way I am "pushing" things...still under 3 miles a day tho...(So that means I am getting fatter...LMAO!!!!) But when I walk a little too much...I definitely pay for it for the next day or two...lol
Stay smokey everyone...
All the best, hope it all works out well for you.
QuotePETE314 - 3/1/2018 10:26 AM I am doing well. I work half a day in the office an half a day at the house. This allows me to get into my recliner and take weight off....giving everything a break...I wouldn't be able to get a full day in without it...That said...I am a bit frustrated. I can't do much. I am not allowed to lift anything over 10 pounds...not for at least another 5 weeks. I am walking as much as possible...and that is the way I am "pushing" things...still under 3 miles a day tho...(So that means I am getting fatter...LMAO!!!!) But when I walk a little too much...I definitely pay for it for the next day or two...lol Stay smokey everyone...
Godspeed Pete....been there and doing that and I know what you're going through. Depending on your Healthcare Insurance ( this is for everybody ) you are allowed through your Insurance WellCare screening to check vitals about your organs, heart, etc. There are also screenings from hospitals that charge about $100 to $150 for 5 screenings in case your deductible is too high. Catching things early is key and while as men we pretend to be like John Wayne save your family the grief of getting checked ....don't we want to see our kids grow up...don't we want to grow old with our wives instead of letting some other sumbich waltz in and take over what we laid the groundwork for...shouldn't we be around to share the fruits of our labor? Prostate checks are fun...just find a female Urologist with skinny fingers....pretend your fishing when collecting your stool sample...when taking the test for your colon load up on some ativan and enjoy the ride. A few minutes of testing is well worth the knowledge that you are doing the right thing ...if not for yourself but for those who depend on you.
Well...I have a really nice cigar picked out for tomorrow to celebrate a clean slate...But it looks like I will need it to help me feel better instead. I got a call from the oncologist and there were a couple of things they are concerned about. So I need a few more tests. It is still possible that this is nothing...so we are taking a closer look to make sure...still no talk of chemo...but I may need an intramuscular injection every month. Still nothing to get too excited about right now. I have my appointment tomorrow and we will go more in depth...I am just trying not to get too ahead of myself. The not knowing for sure is the absolute worst...