A big part of living healthy is paying attention to your body and talking to your doctor when something doesn't feel right to you.
This next man says doing that helped him catch cancer early and get on the road to recovery.
As a fitness professional, prides himself on prioritizing health.
Part of that means staying in tune with his own body.
So when he started noticing some changes, wanted to address them right away.
I was feeling kind of bloating in my stomach.
I was feeling uncomfortable.
So I just kind of noted it and then made an appointment with the doctor because I wanted to get further information.
I was just really trying to pay attention to my body.
After some initial testing, doctors recommended a colonoscopy.
That exam provided some answers about what he was dealing with.
- In case, he was found to have a tumor, a low rectal cancer.
So, colon cancer is an abnormal growth that develops within the lining of either the colon or the rectum.
A lot of times, the majority of the time, patients are actually asymptomatic and one of the reasons why we recommend what are called screening colonoscopies.
- The first thing I thought probably was shock.
Being 36 years old and being told this, it was like, no.
I've taken care of...
I'm probably in the best shape of my life at this point.
It kinda hit me like a ton of bricks.
- If it's caught early, then the polyp...
Or even if it's an early cancer, so to speak, the tumor or polyp can be removed endoscopically, i.e., during the time of the colonoscopy.
If it's unable to be removed that way then surgery would be the next option.
Ultimately, it was surgery that needed.
- Given the depth of invasion, so to speak, of this tumor into the wall of the rectum, he required a surgery to remove the rectum.
- It was a tough decision .
I wanted to make sure that I was around longterm.
When you're making decisions like this, emotions just come from that.
It took two surgeries to put back on the path to health and help him reach the cancer-free milestone.
- Overall, recovery went very well.
He's cured of his cancer.
Longterm, he should live a normal life and after a few years should be at no higher risk than the rest of the general population in terms of developing another cancer.
says what got him through was the support of his wife and family.
It was unbelievable.
So I really tried to stay positive about it as much as I possibly could.
Focus on the positive. That's huge.
It's so huge in recovery. - It took some time, but says he's feeling better and now able to focus on family.
I'm so excited that like every month that I get to see my son grow up.
We throw the ball and then chase it around in the yard and I'm able to run around with him is... is awesome.
Just trying to get back to more normal family life.
I try to really take advantage of that time that I have with them.
hope his story will help educate others about the importance of listening to your body and checking in regularly with your doctor.
- I would like people to know that screening is out there and to seriously consider doing it.
Colon cancer can be a silent killer.
It usually presents with no symptoms.
This is a cancer that we could significantly eliminate with more screening.
- Never would have expected it to be cancer.
It was the fact that I was able to pay attention to my body and look for answers.
We caught it a lot earlier.
Even if one person gets a colonoscopy out of this, that's all that matters.
I just want people to be the healthiest that they can be.
Now run! Run, run! - Yay!
This next man says doing that helped him catch cancer early and get on the road to recovery.
As a fitness professional, prides himself on prioritizing health.
Part of that means staying in tune with his own body.
So when he started noticing some changes, wanted to address them right away.
I was feeling kind of bloating in my stomach.
I was feeling uncomfortable.
So I just kind of noted it and then made an appointment with the doctor because I wanted to get further information.
I was just really trying to pay attention to my body.
After some initial testing, doctors recommended a colonoscopy.
That exam provided some answers about what he was dealing with.
- In case, he was found to have a tumor, a low rectal cancer.
So, colon cancer is an abnormal growth that develops within the lining of either the colon or the rectum.
A lot of times, the majority of the time, patients are actually asymptomatic and one of the reasons why we recommend what are called screening colonoscopies.
- The first thing I thought probably was shock.
Being 36 years old and being told this, it was like, no.
I've taken care of...
I'm probably in the best shape of my life at this point.
It kinda hit me like a ton of bricks.
- If it's caught early, then the polyp...
Or even if it's an early cancer, so to speak, the tumor or polyp can be removed endoscopically, i.e., during the time of the colonoscopy.
If it's unable to be removed that way then surgery would be the next option.
Ultimately, it was surgery that needed.
- Given the depth of invasion, so to speak, of this tumor into the wall of the rectum, he required a surgery to remove the rectum.
- It was a tough decision .
I wanted to make sure that I was around longterm.
When you're making decisions like this, emotions just come from that.
It took two surgeries to put back on the path to health and help him reach the cancer-free milestone.
- Overall, recovery went very well.
He's cured of his cancer.
Longterm, he should live a normal life and after a few years should be at no higher risk than the rest of the general population in terms of developing another cancer.
says what got him through was the support of his wife and family.
It was unbelievable.
So I really tried to stay positive about it as much as I possibly could.
Focus on the positive. That's huge.
It's so huge in recovery. - It took some time, but says he's feeling better and now able to focus on family.
I'm so excited that like every month that I get to see my son grow up.
We throw the ball and then chase it around in the yard and I'm able to run around with him is... is awesome.
Just trying to get back to more normal family life.
I try to really take advantage of that time that I have with them.
hope his story will help educate others about the importance of listening to your body and checking in regularly with your doctor.
- I would like people to know that screening is out there and to seriously consider doing it.
Colon cancer can be a silent killer.
It usually presents with no symptoms.
This is a cancer that we could significantly eliminate with more screening.
- Never would have expected it to be cancer.
It was the fact that I was able to pay attention to my body and look for answers.
We caught it a lot earlier.
Even if one person gets a colonoscopy out of this, that's all that matters.
I just want people to be the healthiest that they can be.
Now run! Run, run! - Yay!
Colon Cancer Awareness
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Oleh
MazR
