Colonoscopy

[btdt22]

not really, beer is a clear liquid

Are you serious? You got away with it?

 

[athena53]

I've never had one, and I turn 50 this year. How do I know if I should get one?

I swore colonoscopies were one of those profit-making tests they sold via fearmongering. My OB-Gyn, bless her, ordered a Fecal Occult Blood Test when I was 50. Since it involves collecting a fecal sample at home and sending it to a lab it's pretty simple. It was positive. Note that this isn't a really specific test; you can have blood in the stool from hemorrhoids, for example, but it was enough to motivate me. They found a tubular villiform adenoma that would have had a good chance of morphing into cancer by now if it hadn't been found and removed. That was 13 years ago. They've found only minor polyps since then but you can bet I go when they tell me.

No history of colon cancer in my family although my parents have had polyps, too. Get the test. It's cheap, easy prevention and colon cancer is nasty.

 

[Big_Hitter]

Are you serious? You got away with it?

Dr said it was okay. I play golf occasionally with a digestive doctor. He was too eager to give me a colonoscopy so I went with someone I didn't know.

I just had to drink gateyaid/beer and take laxatives 24 hours before until I was just, you know, poopin liquid.

Whatever was in that IV messed me up pretty good. After my nap I had a few beers and played 9 holes. I think I hit about 4 houses that day.

 

[Big_Hitter]

I've never had one, and I turn 50 this year. How do I know if I should get one?


Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

talk to your DR. if you have a family history of prostate cancer (like I do) then you need to get one at 50. Dr. told me "see ya in 8 years" after I got mine.

 

[ChiliPepr]

He related that he had seen my X-rays and had both good news and bad news.

"The good news" he said, "is that on the outside, you look terrific. But on the inside, boy, do you look old!"

I had a similar experience when I was in my early thirties... Went to see a chiropractor and he took x-rays before he did anything... when he was reading them he looked at me and said "You have one of the healthiest neck/spines I have ever seen... for an eighty year old! What were you doing?"

Guess that is what 13 years playing in a rugby front row does.

 

[Big_Hitter]

Guess that is what 13 years playing in a rugby front row does.

how are your ears?

 

[audreyh1]

I had one at 41 and everything was super clear no polyps but one of the 17 random samples they took detected pre-cancerous cells. The doctor who performed the procedure thinks it was contamination at the testing lab but told me to come back in five years instead of 10

So 2017 is my date with the probe.

What? What random samples? Our procedures didn't do any random sampling. Never heard of this. Sounds like a suspicious upgrade (more $$).

 

[audreyh1]

Dr said it was okay. I play golf occasionally with a digestive doctor. He was too eager to give me a colonoscopy so I went with someone I didn't know.

I just had to drink gateyaid/beer and take laxatives 24 hours before until I was just, you know, poopin liquid.

Whatever was in that IV messed me up pretty good. After my nap I had a few beers and played 9 holes. I think I hit about 4 houses that day.

I guess you didn't hear/read the instructions for no vigorous physical activity the rest of the day?

 

[Big_Hitter]

I guess you didn't hear/read the instructions for no vigorous physical activity the rest of the day?

I live on a golf course and have a golf cart. They just didn't want me driving. If you swing the club correctly it doesn't take that much effort.


But yes, I don't usually follow instructions that well. That's why I've been walking on a broken toe for two weeks.

 

[Cobra9777]

Had my first at 53. They zapped one polyp and put me on the every 5 year plan. 100% covered by insurance. So aside from the prep, which is pretty horrible, not really a big deal.

 

[Beldar]

Stranger things have happened. I was quite surprised to find that zit-popping videos are all the rage on YouTube

I'm reluctant to ask what you were searching for to discover that

_B

 

[roninop]

Having one next month, I just turned 60 and on the 5 year plan due to family history. Fortunately, insurance covers 100%. I did some price checking and I was shocked at how much it can cost with facility fees, Dr.'s fees, Anesthesia, Pathology, etc.

My Dr. is part owner of their own out-patient clinic the cost was $750 for his facility charge and the Hospital as an out-patient was $1750.

 

[audreyh1]

I live on a golf course and have a golf cart. They just didn't want me driving. If you swing the club correctly it doesn't take that much effort.


But yes, I don't usually follow instructions that well. That's why I've been walking on a broken toe for two weeks.

I'm pretty sure the swings are enough of a nono after a colonoscopy. You are really supposed to take it very easy the rest of the day, and let your intestines rest.

 

[ChiliPepr]

how are your ears?

Ears are good, mostly loosehead... rarely lock or #8. Did manage to tear them a few times, but never got cauliflower ear. Tape is a wonderful thing.

 

[Big_Hitter]

I'm pretty sure the swings are enough of a nono after a colonoscopy. You are really supposed to take it very easy the rest of the day, and let your intestines rest.

I specifically asked and they just told me not to drive. There were okay with my playing golf. I don't think they got to my intestines? difficult to tell since I was passed out on my side lol

 

[athena53]

I was sedated for mine but went to the gym in the afternoon for a workout, a little shorter than my usual. I tend to listen to my body more than I listen to the doctors when it comes to physical exertion.


As for "clear liquids"- I told my doc I'd finished off with a chaser of good scotch after drinking all the prep stuff to get the bad taste of the prep solution out of my mouth. He laughed and said that was OK.

 

[braumeister]

I specifically asked and they just told me not to drive.

I would interpret that as meaning I had to stay on the putting green.

 

[upset264]

My doctor, who was a low key kind of guy, had recommended several times that I get a colonoscopy but I always put it off. No history of colon cancer in the family. One day in 2008 at age 59 I went in for a check up and he had an intern he was training. He turned me over to her. She asked about the colonoscopy and I gave the usual reply that I'm going to get one some day. Her answer was "ok lets set that up right now". I knew it was the right thing to do so I didn't argue with her.

They found two large polyps, too big to remove while doing the colonoscopy. Afterward the doctor came in, told me what he had found, showed me pictures and explained that he took samples for biopsy. The solution was to remove about 4 inches of my colon. As he left he said "I'm concerned about this" After sweating it out for a couple of days the news was good, no evidence of cancer. But in time it would have been. I had the surgery and recovered quickly with no lasting effects. I remember asking the surgeon what effect removing 4 inches of colon would have and his answer was "none, you have more than you need".

Anyway, if I had not had the colonoscopy I no doubt would have regretted it very much a few years later.

And I'll always remember the young doctor who pushed me into it.

 

[Big_Hitter]

my dr friend says it's difficult to detect colon cancer without a colonoscopy

 

[imoldernu]

There's bad, and there's good.

The bad was a colonoscopy @ age 53 that resulted in in a sigmoid re-section because of cancer. Back in 1989, the operations was more difficult than today, and resulted in weeks in the hospital, and not being able to stand up straight for three months. Much easier today, and sometimes can be done with a laparoscopy.

The good is twofold... the worry about recurrence caused a rethinking about early retirement, which we decided to try. The second part, is that there was no recurrence and we're still retired...27 years later.

"Tis an ill wind that blows no good..."

 

[athena53]

And I'll always remember the young doctor who pushed me into it.

I hope you had a chance to thank her! I did go back to my gynecologist and thank her profoundly for recommending the fecal occult blood test that gave me the nudge I needed to get the colonoscopy.

 

[NW-Bound]

Colonoscopies are piece of cake. Surely, you master the art of holding in while rushing to the bathroom, but you are unconscious during the procedure. I have had 3. Don't be a sissy.

The real big deals are procedures when you have to stay awake (it may or may not involve your bottom). Now, that's something to complain about. Or going through major surgeries, and having scars a foot long to remind you of the experience...

Among medical experiences, a colonoscopy is not a "life changing" experience. Wait till you get a real one.

 

[Bir48die]

I think of a colonoscopy as a "colon cleansing" followed by some procedure.

 

[medved]

I am a wimp about medical stuff. But really a colonoscopy is not a big deal at all. The prep is mildly annoying, for the few hours you are doing it. But it gives me a chance to catch up on some reading, while on the can. And the procedure is just a nap. I do recommend propofol sedation over other options, such as versed and fentanyl, if you are given a choice.*

* Nothing in this post constitutes medical advice. You should discuss the risks and benefits of any medication and medical treatment with your treating physician.

 

[braumeister]

The real big deals are procedures when you have to stay awake (it may or may not involve your bottom).

Like a prostate biopsy.

My first two were without anesthesia, and I would rate them as the most uncomfortable experiences I have ever had (although not especially painful).
The next two were with anesthesia, and a piece of cake.