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Notes on My Colon Cancer

charlieharrington.com

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Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#31

Post by graeme »

stevecalifornia wrote: post #5

Fellow readers: Do not be afraid of a colonoscopy. Do not avoid it-- in fact, look forward to it. They are easy and painless. Waking up from the anesthesia I felt more relaxed than I ever have in my life. Also, the prep of clearing your system will reset your digestive system and you'll feel like a new person. I think the prep cleared out whatever it was that was causing us to investigate my digestive system in the f…

Recommend anyone considering this to ask your doctor about using a sedative instead of general anesthesias.

As best I can tell general anesthesia for colonoscopy for low risk appears to be a cultural custom especially prevalent in the northeastern USA.

Anesthesia has many more possible side effects than sedatives and ought to be avoided unless needed (this applies to any unneeded treatment).

Plus if you’re awake you can actually watch the scope going, it’s cool! Not painful at all. Agree there is no reason to fear colonoscopy but there is also no reason to undergo general anesthesias for it either in most cases

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#32

Post by drewg123 »

whatrocks wrote: post #15
drewg123 wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

the bowel prep is easy and painless Bullshit. I've got Crohn's, and have had more colonoscopies than I can count since age 13. About 75% of the time, I'm throwing up due to the prep. The prep is the WORST part. It has gotten better over the years. If you go for one, do NOT let them give you the jug full of powder. I've had much better luck with prep-o-pik. The other PITA is they generally won't let you go for the pro…

Good advice, and I've edited my comment above to clarify. I've only had to two rounds of bowel prep so far - albeit on two different types of prep stuff. Had the jug the first time. I'm sorry to hear about your experience with it.

Thanks, I appreciate that. The prep is one of my pet peeves, so I'm sorry for the violent disagreement above!

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#33

Post by techdevangelist »

nikomen wrote: post #16
stevecalifornia wrote: post #5

Fellow readers: Do not be afraid of a colonoscopy. Do not avoid it-- in fact, look forward to it. They are easy and painless. Waking up from the anesthesia I felt more relaxed than I ever have in my life. Also, the prep of clearing your system will reset your digestive system and you'll feel like a new person. I think the prep cleared out whatever it was that was causing us to investigate my digestive system in the f…

I just had a colonoscopy a few weeks ago because of some minor bleeding. Ended up just being hemorrhoids and a small polyp. Definitely worth having the peace of mind. The worst part or the prep was not sleeping much that night because I was up until 3am. Watching TV most of the night was relaxing, though. After the procedure I took it easy all day while the propofol effects wore off. Don’t wait to have a colonoscopy.…

I’ve got Crohn’s so I’ve had my share of colonoscopies, completely agree that the procedure is a breeze. And now that propofol is the standard it’s that much better, the older versed/morphine combo really hammered you. The prep is the worst bit and it’s better if you prep well for the prep; wet wipes, bidet, water bottle anything, some good reading material and a good even free from other disruptions (you’ll be disrupted enough...)

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#34

Post by peter303 »

The usual recipe is a colonoscopy at age 50, 60 and 70. To be supplemented by other yearly blood or DNA (cologard) tests.

If you have family history or symptoms you accelerate the schedule.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#35

Post by drewg123 »

01100011 wrote: post #21
drewg123 wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

the bowel prep is easy and painless Bullshit. I've got Crohn's, and have had more colonoscopies than I can count since age 13. About 75% of the time, I'm throwing up due to the prep. The prep is the WORST part. It has gotten better over the years. If you go for one, do NOT let them give you the jug full of powder. I've had much better luck with prep-o-pik. The other PITA is they generally won't let you go for the pro…

Yeah, drinking a gallon of anything that fast is no fun, but the laxative they gave me was terrible. The worst part was that I tried drinking it cold, which made it sit in my stomach and build up, so I ran out of space to drink more. I heated it up, which got things moving again, but made it taste even worse. I will say though, after having the colonoscopy, my general bowel symptoms(never ending gas, mostly) improved…

You reset your microbiome; I think this is what the colon cleanse people are trying to achieve. I usually try to take good probiotics and eat right (avoid processed foods, especially sugar) after to try to establish good gut bacteria.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#36

Post by whatrocks »

ern wrote: post #27

I cannot stress this enough: Learn your family's medical history and write it down in a note on your phone. You'll be asked for this info 10,000 times before every single appointment. But, more importantly, your family history can be a signal to you and your docs whether are "higher-risk" for certain conditions. Doctors I've seen don't really care about anything beyond parents and siblings for family history. They wo…

Well, the software I had to use didn't allow for grandparent's siblings (so I added those in the notes). But it did ask for grandparents (also also aunts, uncles, and cousins). My mom's one of nine, so this took quite some time!

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#37

Post by peter303 »

About a decade ago companies were promoting virtual colonoscopy. This converted a cat scan into a tube video using advanced computer graphics. You still had to do the bowel-prep agony for a clear view.

If the virtual kind saw a problem, it would be followed by the regular camera kind.

They were cheaper than a gastroentreologist. But for some reason they never caught on with doctors or insurance companies.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#38

Post by johnnyAghands »

Glad you're doing well man, and thanks for sharing your experience with us. As someone who has never liked anyone near his butt -- I feel like I should get over it and get tested on a regular basis -- and will remember to take book. Also will make sure it's real god damn book -- I mean how bad ass is that, reading about the exploits of the world's most famous samuarai while waiting for surgery. Wishing you good health!

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#39

Post by flowerlad »

Nots on da Vinci robot:

High-tech surgical robots aren’t an improvement over traditional operations. [1] For some patients, the robots may be worse. [2] and [3].

[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/health/robotic-surgery-ca...

[2] https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/09/09/new-concerns-on-ro...

[3] https://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/26/health/salesmen-in-the-su...

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#40

Post by cstrahan »

stevecalifornia wrote: post #5

Fellow readers: Do not be afraid of a colonoscopy. Do not avoid it-- in fact, look forward to it. They are easy and painless. Waking up from the anesthesia I felt more relaxed than I ever have in my life. Also, the prep of clearing your system will reset your digestive system and you'll feel like a new person. I think the prep cleared out whatever it was that was causing us to investigate my digestive system in the f…

> They are easy and painless. Waking up from the anesthesia I felt more relaxed than I ever have in my life.

Alternatively, you can opt for no anesthesia/sedative, if like me your major concern is lingering after effects (and a fear of going under). I had a colonoscopy and an EGD in the same visit, really wasn’t a big deal. Also quite fun to see your insides on the monitor — gave me peace of mind to see perfectly uniform pink healthy flesh, as opposed to some of the craziness you can find on YouTube.

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