Good wish texts, blog comments and get well cards continue to roll in. I am astounded by the love and support of both friends and family it truly lifts my spirits.
For clarity I am going to explain my treatment and the time scale involved. For simplicity's sake I'll break it down into stages.
Stage 1: Colostomy/Bypass operation.
This was done on the 12 October for 2 reasons; 1 to make me more comfortable (which it has) and 2 to bypass the cancerous bowel area. This will avoid complications that could arise during radio/chemo therapy treatment.
Stage2: Radio/Chemotherapy.
5 Weeks of Radio therapy simultaneously supported by Chemotherapy (tablets not intravienous supply). This will kill the cancerous cells but will also damage healthy cells in the area, although these will heal.
All this treatment will require time to heal and settle before moving to the next stage.
Stage 3: Surgery to remove the now dead cancerous mass and rejoin the bowel.
This is the largest surgical operation I will have and will take between 4 - 6 weeks to recover but all the cancerous material will have been removed.
Stage 4: Reversal of the colostomy.
This is the last stage and can be upto 12 weeks after stage 3.
The whole process will take 6-7 months, bear in mind the treatment has already started so this (October) can be taken as the first month.
I could return to work/normal life between between stages 3 and 4. Stage 4 is the least intrusive so recovery should be fairly brisk.
All things being well I am hoping to return to a normal life early spring 2012.
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