Course Of Action After Colon Cancer Surgery?

Colon cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer around today. The survival chances for those affected depend greatly on what stage the cancer is at. When caught early, survival rates are high. We have looked at various stages of colon cancer on this website and this article will be looking more in depth at what happens after colon cancer surgery.

In most cases, the surgery involved in colon cancer is pretty invasive. The normal course of action to remove cancerous parts of the colon is a method known as resection. You can read more about this by viewing other articles on this website. What happens after colon cancer surgery is performed really depends upon what stage of cancer the patient is at.

Sometimes, if caught in the early stages there will be no treatment after the operation. In this case the patient may need to wear a colostomy bag either temporarily or permanently and may also be on a restricted diet for a while. He or she will also need regular check-ups to ensure the cancer has not returned. Other than this, the patient is free to get on with their life and look forward to a full recovery.

However, in many cases follow up treat is needed after colon cancer surgery. This is most likely to be chemotherapy, radiation treatment, or a combination of the two. Chemotherapy for colon cancer is sometimes administered in tablet form. It is no less effective, but has some advantages for the patient. First of all they can take the drug themselves while they are at home, rather than staying at hospital and being connected to a drip. It does still come with side effects though. There are too many to list but a few include Skin irritation and cracking or yellowing, tiredness, nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, and a metallic taste in the mouth. The above examples are some of the more common side effects.

When a patient has radiation therapy after colon cancer surgery it will involve regular visits to the hospital. My father had this and had to visit every day for about 6 weeks. The patient will often be tattooed with small marks so that the radiation can be targeted at exactly the right place every time. The most common side effects of this are tiredness, and a stinging sensation on the area that has been targeted.

The length of treatment after colon cancer surgery depends largely at what stage the cancer is at. The more advanced the cancer is, and the further it has spread; the longer chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy will be administered.