Q1 came in bits and pieces. Some from my nurse practioner who found my blood work to be very serious and indicated "bleeding somewhere". Then the emergency room doctor because I passed out, ended up in ED, had a CT scan and whatever he was talking about was very confusing for me. Then the gastro MD who did the colonoscopy found a bleeding tumor that he recommended come right out. And the surgeon who removed it said he was confident that it was removed in time only to have to retract after the path report indicated Stage 3 with mets to some lymph nodes. It all happened in bits and pieces and very quickly. How could it have been improved? Perhaps if each person prepared me for the "worse case scenario" then worked backward from there. But each one made me feel like I was dealing with something unknown, when looking back on it, I think they knew more than they would admit.

Ran out of time will give you more later....

Hi JG I am in Australia so not sure if me answering will be of help except as a comparassion to other country.

Q1 My cancer was discovered during a colonoscopy for other problems and came as a surprise. I was told what I had with a brief outline of what needed to happen. The Doc then asked if I had questions at which point he said this is a lot to take in and I want to talk to you in more depth when you have had a chance to process this and he had his receptionist phone me a day later to make a follow up appointment. During this meeting I was given all the information in a format that I could understand with all the time I needed to ask questions.

Q2 For me the surgeon provided all the support I met with him weekly or had tests leading up to surgery. Each time we met he explained what had to happen and what I should do to help with my own recovery.

Part of my treatment was radiation and I met with these people prior to surgery and they also explained what was to happen and supported me as much as they could.

I also met with my oncologist prior to surgery even though it was planned to have chemo after surgery.

Q3 As highlighted above my diagnose through to treatment and follow up was explained to me in a way I could understand and why the surgery was needed. I was involved in decision around what form of treatment I was to get and the pros and cons of different treatment. I was able to talk to my team at any time and they always seemed to be there.

One big thing for me was when I phoned with a question or concern if the person I phoned was not available at that time they all called me back normally within a couple of hours. Not one of my phone calls was not replied to. This made me feel that I was important to them and that they really cared about me. For this old bloke that really helped with my mental outlook.

Hope this helps G8

Hi Janie. I had a "Stage-3" colon cancer to deal with last march, 2010.
It started off on bad at the get-go. I walked into the into the doctors office building and the 1st thing that greeted me was a big sign that said" CANCER CENTER". 1st impressions are that that can only mean certain death. I got past that. 1st Impressions are usually wrong but they can put you in a bad frame of mind..
The 1st visit with the doctor, the best in our area, spent a lot of valuable time explaining what I might be up against based on 3 CAT Scans I had.

Now the questions: 1: After the colonoscopy the doctor took time to make sure that I knew what i was up against. He had a very ugly picture showing me what my Stage-3 cancer actually looked like. I do have it if you would like to be grossed out.
2: The nursing staff was very well trained on how to handle a patent that's half out of their mind with fear. I will add a note that some of the in-house doctors could improve their bed-side manners.
3: The colon doctor came in twice the night before and gave me a run-down on what was going to happen. It was explained to him earlier that i have a very vivid imagination and I needed some re-enforcing that all will be ok. The morning of the surgery he came in and gave me a broad brush stroke of what was about to happen. I was in a drugged state so I thought that all is well in my world.

Why I needed the surgery was quite clear when he gave me a copy of the Stage-3 invader. It was so large that he could not get the video probe paste it. It had to go.

I did have an internal bleeding problem a day or so later that they took care of.

Hope this helps some.
RT...

thank you so much for your info, its much appreciated, I know you are all in diff countries than the uk, but still want the info, as care and support is required wherever you are in the world and may give an insight to other ways of dealing with this cruel disease, thank you.

I forgot and just remembered, yes, I was given something in writing by my surgeon. A nice booklet about the colon and what tumors in certain areas of the colon could look like (paintings, not actual photos). It was informative but showed people with smiles on their faces which I thought was odd for people having cancerous tumors to deal with.
Q2 - The surgeon's receptionist was wonderful. I felt like I could call her anytime. I was in surgery very quickly after they found the tumor. They wanted to do it within days but I postponned for 1 week to get a chance to start my semester teaching before I had to take time off. Cancer doesn't seem to schedule itself very well.
Q3 - I understood the diagnosis better once I was under care of the oncologist and chemo clinic. Each doctor all along impressed upon me the seriousness of the situation and need for surgery but the oncologist really helped me understand what had happened.

All in all, I felt that I was one of many people who come in with cancer and it was all in a day's work. The docs didn't seem to let me digest what was going on. If anything they didn't seem to want to say much until the pathology report was in. Then I was passed onto oncology.