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How Does Colon Cancer Develop?
Colon cancer typically develops from polyps found in the colon and rectum. These tumors un-detected can turn into very advanced forms of cancer and can spread throughout the body.
What Does the Surgery Entail?
There are multiple types of Colon Cancer surgeries to remove the cancerous tumor. Most often, curative surgery methods are used which entails removing the polyp from the colon. If your tumor is in an advanced stage, it will require that the section containing the cancerous growth is removed and the remaining parts of your colon are fused together.
Before the surgery begins, the colon is cleansed completely in order to reduce any risk of infection. The cleansing is done using strong laxatives and enemas or by drinking one gallon of a cleansing fluid the night before the surgery.
The surgery is always done under general anesthesia while the patient is asleep. With new medicinal technologies like laparoscopy, the incision is hardly noticeable once it heals. After the abdomen is entered, the infected part of the colon is removed by surgery and the remaining parts of the colon are connected, fused or anatomized together.
If the cancer occurs in the lower rectum or anus, the doctor might have to make another incision in the rectum or near it. Since the cancer occurs towards the end of the rectum, there may be no colon left after the surgery to attach the remaining colon to. If such an incident occurs, then the remaining colon is rerouted to outside the abdomen. This is known as colostomy. This is usually done when the surgeon thinks that the anastomosis will not be successful or if the colon is not clean enough.
What can I expect after surgery?
Depending on the severity of your case, you may require chemotherapy to continue the treatment of the cancerous growth. If you have detected the cancer early enough, the simple removal of the polyp may be enough and you will not require chemotherapy.
Your doctor and surgeon will want you to follow-up with several exams to determine the success of your surgical procedure.
Your post operative follow-ups are critical to the healing process. It is important during this period that you verify all the cancer has been removed and has not metastasized to other parts of your body.
The key is early detection.
What can I eat after my operation?
It is not advisable to become eating directly after your procedure. More than likely you will be fed with a feeding tube to let your GI and small intestines heal properly in the first few days following your surgery.
The proper diet is critical to your healing process. A good diet will help your immune system and will help you decrease the risk of infection which can occur after your surgical procedure. Your physician will help lay out a solid diet with a nutritionist. Make sure you follow their advice. You will notice that your appetite will vary from day to day after the surgery, but do the best you can to eat normal and do not force yourself to eat if your body is telling you not to. Smaller meals might be better than three large meals while you are healing.Try your best to avoid greasy foods. These will upset your stomach after your operation. In addition, fluids are extremely important. Make sure you get at least eight (8) glasses of water a day and plenty of fluids while you recover.
What the recent studies are showing is pretty scary. Our country has the highest number of colon-rectal cancer cases being reported in the entire world. And the disease is equally extensive among males as they are in females. In fact the disease today is killing more Americans than it ever did before. To some it is too embarrassing a subject to talk about. But it must be realized that cancer and deaths resulting from that are much more serious things and should be dealt brushing aside all sorts of inhibitions.
Through time, most renowned practitioners of alternative medicine have claimed that an unclean colon is the most dominant cause of all kinds of diseases. Without regular and proper bowl movements, the waste material that is supposed to be driven out of the body remains inside. They in turn produce toxins which are slowly absorbed by other parts of the body including the organs. This in no way can be something good for the body. In fact the toxic waste can severely affect our health.
The concept of cleansing the colon has been there for sometime now. In fact if we go back in time, the very first mention of colon cleansing can be traced as far back as the Egyptian civilization. In fact the Egyptians believed that the root of all physical ailments can be traced back to the colon. So, most of the treatment that they practiced was targeted in getting the colon work properly.
It is therefore necessary to maintain a clean colon. The ideal way to tackle an unclean colon is to go for a colon cleansing. There are several methods available to us these days which can ensure that our colon is cleansed properly. These would include: – Colon hydrotherapy – Colon cleansing herbs – Oxygen-based colon cleansing laxatives – Regular laxatives practiced in conventional medicine
Once you have got your colon cleansed the next step would be to alter your regular diet. The normal diet we have is full of processed foods. So what we miss out on is fiber. Fiber actually helps to clean our system. Without enough of it, our bowels never quite become clear. So we must increase our fiber intake. It should be anything between 25-30 grams everyday. It can be either consumed dissolved in water or with your food.
Water is another critical element in getting your colon clean. There is a simple method to calculate how much water you need for your body. Whatever your weight be in pounds drink half of it in ounces. So if you weigh 200 pounds, then drink 100 ounces of water which would be approximately 2.5 liters.
Colon cleansing not only ensures a better chance of you to avoid colon cancers but also other diseases like the Crohn's Disease and Diverticulitis.