THE thought of having to strip off so someone can stick a tube up your bottom can be enough to make anyone stick their head in the sand when it comes to tummy trouble and bottom pain.
But even if you feel embarrassed or uncomfortable, sharing your concerns, getting checked and turning up for a rectal exam or colonoscopy appointment is vital when it comes to diagnosis, treatment and your health.
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Dr Philippa Kaye was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2019, aged just 39 and has since written a book about it, Doctors Get Cancer Too.
She knows all about how important getting checked is, and how colonoscopies work too…
Dr Philippa tells Central Recorder: “I examine patients as part of my job, every day, but one examination often leads to a patient apologising.
“And that is if they need a rectal examination.
“‘Sorry you have to do this,’ they say, and I reply that it is an important part of my job!
“Patients have told me that the fear of the examination has made them put off going to the doctor and I often see the look of horror mixed with trepidation on their faces if I tell them I need to refer them to the colorectal specialists, and it is likely they will need a colonoscopy.
“A colonoscopy is a very common procedure that involves putting a long, thin, flexible tube with a camera on the end, up your bottom.
“This allows the surgeon to have a close up view of the insides of your intestine to see if it is healthy.
“If the doctor sees anything that needs further investigation, they can take photos and samples (biopsies), and small polyps (tissue growths), which have the potential to turn into cancer in the future, can also be removed.
“Research carried out by Bowel Cancer UK confirms the looks I see on my patient’s faces – almost 60 per cent of people are worried about having a colonoscopy – but please don’t put off having yours if your doctor has suggested one, a colonoscopy could save your life – it saved mine.
“I was 39 years old when I was referred for a colonoscopy and to be honest, at the time, I wasn’t necessarily worried.
“I was more annoyed at the hassle of having to take the time off work and the bowel prep!
“In order to take a good look at your large intestine you need to take bowel preparation – a strong laxative – to wash out all the stool inside the bowel first.
“And by strong, I do mean extremely strong.
“You will need to stay at home in close proximity to a toilet!
“Depending on the time of the test, this is taken either the day before or in the morning (or sometimes the dose is split).
“It involves drinking the medicine and my advice is to make the drink very cold and to keep slowly slowly sipping it, drinking a large volume all at once may make you feel sick.
“Once you start going to the toilet a lot your bottom might get a little sore from the wiping so prepare by getting in some simple nappy cream!
“And be sure you are drinking plenty of fluids.
“The procedure itself takes around 30 minutes and you are likely to be offered some painkillers and/or sedation, but it is not generally painful!
“You have to wear a hospital gown, generally with modesty shorts underneath, which are sort of like a pair of shorts or knickerbockers with a slit in the back.
“One size fits all so mine came to my knees!
“During the examination you lie on the exam couch/bed, generally a drip is put into your hand so any medication can be delivered if required and you may have an oxygen mask or nasal prongs for oxygen.
“You lie on your left side and bring your knees up to your chest.
“You feel the tube being inserted into the anus and then might feel a bit of pressure around the bottom, but you can’t feel the doctor ‘poking inside you’ really.
KNOWING BOWEL CANCER SIGNS COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE
BOWEL cancer is the fourth most common form of the disease in the UK – but the second deadliest, claiming around 16,000 lives a year.
Yet it can be cured, if it’s diagnosed early enough.
Fewer than one in ten people survive bowel cancer if it’s picked up at stage 4, but detected at stage 1 – before it’s spread – and more than nine in ten patients will live five years or longer.
There are two ways to ensure early diagnosis, screening and awareness of the symptoms.
Brits have been subjected to a postcode lottery when it comes to bowel cancer screening, with tests sent out in Scotland from 50, while people in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have to wait until they are 60.
That’s why Central Recorder launched the No Time 2 Lose campaign, calling on the Government to lower the screening age, to save thousands of lives a year.
In the summer of 2018, Matt Hancock agreed, in a victory for Central Recorder and campaigners – yet three years on and screening at 50 has yet to be widely rolled out.
While screening is an important part of early diagnosis, so is knowing the symptoms and acting if you spot the signs.
The five red-flag symptoms are:
- Bleeding from the back passage, or blood in your poo
- A change in your normal toilet habits – going more or less often for example
- Pain or lump in your tummy
- Extreme tiredness for no real reason
- Unexplained weight loss
If you’re worried, don’t be embarrassed and speak to your GP – doctors see and deal with bowel problems all the time.
“It can feel a little odd, but not uncomfortable.
“If you have a biopsy taken you may not even notice, but some people may find it slightly uncomfortable.
“The sample is put straight into a sample pot to be sent to histopathology for examination.
“They tend to explain what’s happening as they go but you can ask for more or less explanation – whatever you feel comfortable with!
“Because of the medication you may be given you will need someone to take you home again afterwards.
“As both a GP and someone who has had bowel cancer, I completely understand why the thought of having a colonoscopy may seem daunting and worrying, but it’s vital to have this test if you’re referred.
“Most people who have a colonoscopy won’t have bowel cancer.
“But, if bowel cancer is detected at its earliest stage, nearly everybody is treated successfully.
“Bowel cancer is the fourth commonest cancer in the UK but the second biggest cancer killer – and knowing the symptoms is vital:
- Bleeding from your bottom and/or blood in your poo
- A persistent and unexplained change in bowel habit
- Unexplained weight loss
- Extreme tiredness for no obvious reason
- A pain or lump in your tummy
“Having any one (or all) of those symptoms does not automatically mean you have bowel cancer, rather that you have a symptom which needs to be investigated.
“Thousands of colonoscopies are performed up and down the country each day and in the vast majority of these, bowel cancer is NOT found.
“Unfortunately that is not my story, though at my age at the time, my risk of having bowel cancer was about one in 10,000 people.
“My bowel cancer was found at a colonoscopy – I am incredibly grateful that it was.
“I am truly thankful there is an investigation which meant my cancer was found at a time when it was treatable, and I am currently now cancer free.
“That colonoscopy saved my life.
“If you are referred for one, please don’t put it off.”
To find out more, visit bowelcanceruk.org.uk/colonoscopyconfidence.
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