Greg, Receiving those results from the Cologuard test must have been a bit of a shock. I hope you fall into that 13% false positive group.
I'm 58, and was due for another colonoscopy earlier this year. It would have been my third in 15 years. My doctor told me to call him back with a date and he would set it up with my gastroenterologist. Two weeks later my doctor retired and I have not yet seen his replacement. I never picked a date and I never called him back, so I still haven't had the colonoscopy. Like most, it's the prep that makes it so difficult. And of course, the prep is even more difficult for my caregiver. But putting all that aside, I am almost certain I would reject whatever treatment necessary to tackle the problem if they discovered cancer. I have lived a comfortable, full life, relatively free from serious health problems. But I know without a doubt that my life is only going to get harder going forward. And not just a little bit harder, but a lot harder. I lost my dad last year, and mom is not getting any younger. 35 years of quad-dom is quite enough for me. Anything beyond this point is just the credits rolling. I'll enjoy what I can, but I'm not willing to spend my remaining days recovering from colon surgery and/or chemotherapy should I be diagnosed. Having said all that, my dad was diagnosed with colon cancer when he was 58. They discovered it during another surgical procedure, brought him out of anesthesia, broke the news, had him sign some papers, put him back under, and removed a sizable length of his colon. He then underwent chemotherapy, and it was a terrible two year ordeal. BUT, he survived, eventually felt much better, and lived another 20 years in good health. All of us were glad he chose to fight it. That is of course a personal decision. Good luck with the colonoscopy. If you receive good news from the procedure, and you are anything like me, you will come out of it feeling better for having cleaned yourself out, maybe lost a few pounds, and you will vow to do better going forward, to eat better, and take better care of yourself. And if you're anything like me, you will be wolfing down a pizza and chugging a couple tallboys by the end of the week. I look forward to hearing your good report. Greg On Sun, Aug 21, 2022 at 5:58 PM Greg <g...@eskimo.com> wrote: > Recently had a positive Cologuard Test. So doing a colonoscopy next week. > I almost said no. I just can't handle the prep. Drinking that nasty stuff. > But the Doc said I could do just pills and water. 12 pills lots of water, > 12 more pills, lots more water. > > They do have a 13% false positive, but if not, lets hope its not far > along. Not sure I'd do Chemo. > > Greg > >
