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Notes on My Colon Cancer

charlieharrington.com

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Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#111

Post by winslow »

cableshaft wrote: post #65

I've had the blood bit off and on (mostly off lately, but it happened again recently for a day), but I've always been told by doctors that it's just hemorrhoids, I'm too young to get cancer. Then Chadwick died, and I'm like, man, he got diagnosed with Stage 3 the same age I am now, and I'm in terrible shape compared to him. I'm thinking I should probably get a colonoscopy next summer, after this wave of Covid dies do…

Don't wait until next summer. There's no guarantee that covid numbers will be under better control. Giving a potential cancer/tumor a whole year to grow and spread is IMO a bigger risk than covid.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#112

Post by elihu »

codegeek wrote: post #100
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…

In US, if I have no symptoms, can I just get it done as a preventive care? I doubt that wothout a referral. Has anyone done that? I m approaching 40 and wondering

Maybe? I think they're recommended for everyone at 50 years, but for anyone else I don't think they would normally recommend getting one unless you have some symptom or family history of cancer.

Getting a genetic test might be another option if cancer is what you're worried about. Not as accurate as a colonoscopy, though.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#113

Post by JKCalhoun »

dbcurtis wrote: post #47
graeme wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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…

> Plus if you’re awake you can actually watch the scope going, it’s cool! Not painful at all. For sure! My first colonoscopy I was sedated and enjoyed watching the screen. In fact, I remember I was making HILARIOUS jokes the entire time. I could not remember them afterwards though. My second colonoscopy my doctor sedated me again, but put me further under for reasons that remain a mystery. Also, a year ago we buried…

> In fact, I remember I was making HILARIOUS jokes the entire time.

Jimi Hendrix remembered he was playing MUCH BETTER guitar when he was on acid.

Until he heard the recordings....

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#114

Post by adamredwoods »

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…

That prep is awful! I've had many colonoscopies. The procedure is fine, but oh! That prep tastes horrible!

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#115

Post by ecmascript »

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.

They usually are, for most people. But for me the first time I did it was the most painful experience ever. So painful in fact that they had to abort it and book me for another time and that time I went under.

That was before my surgery and when my intestines were all over the place. That being said, after my surgery in which they corrected the placement of my intestines, it was painless. That time, the last time I did it, I chit chatted with the doctor and nurse and it was funnily a pretty relaxing experience since I'd gotten some mild drugs before because I was nervous it would hurt as it did the fist time.

I have done a colonoscopy 3 times.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#116

Post by makach »

God damn it! I get upset when reading this article! The doctor mentioned at the beginning of the article is obviously not doing his job! "Don't worry about it?!" "you don't need another physical exam!?"

Making assumptions without examination is incredibly unprofessional and carries with it potential critical consequences.

If you have an issue and bring it to your doctor and your doctor fails to follow up with an examination and makes assumptions, it is time to find another doctor.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#117

Post by JKCalhoun »

mkuklik wrote: post #51
graeme wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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…

I've got it done without sedatives 10 years. It was quite a ride. They went only half way and I had enough. It was literally a gut-wrenching experience.

Yeah, once.

It gets worse the farther they go.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#118

Post by seehafer »

graeme wrote: post #31
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…

We badly over-use general anesthesia. Next to antibiotics it might be the most over-used thing in medicine. When you scratch the surface of the neuroscience of general anesthesia you will never want to experience it in your life if you can help it. It's effectively a controlled coma, and though we can control it, we don't know the precise mechanism of action. (Like so many things with the central nervous system it was discovered by trial-and-error.)

If you're having a medical procedure and the physician mentions general anesthesia, always ask if IV sedation works as an alternative.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#119

Post by nathias »

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…

That said, you what you should really be afraid is gastroscopy, it feels like dying.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#120

Post by voxl »

jeswin wrote: post #75
deepspace wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Funny, I am considered high risk and have had it done annually for about 15 years. None of my doctors ever mentioned a sedative as an option, let alone anesthesia. And it has never been a big deal. The risk associated with anesthesia is way too high to justify it for this kind of procedure. Once every few years they find a suspicious polyp and snip it of / cauterize the wound, all with just local numbing. Still nothi…

I got mine done three years back at 36 (I've had gastric issues, and my mom has colorectal cancer) - didn't use sedatives or anesthesia. Pain tolerance is relative, so my own experience wouldn't carry over. I can understand if some people want sedatives, but anesthesia is pretty high risk like you were saying.

So much "high risk" in this thread, yet its used all over the place in United States and not a single shred of evidence to be found anywhere here...
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