Colorectal Cancer: 402 Real Stories
402 stories match colorectal cancer. 338 of them mention surgery.
Stage IV Colorectal Cancer: Trevor’s Patient Story
Trevor Maxwell was about 40 when fatigue became impossible to ignore. Through 2017 and early 2018, he became more tired, and eventually walking up stairs made his heart pound. Blood work showed significant anemia, and his doctor sent him for a colonoscopy. On…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Kelly’s Survivor Story
Kelly Spill’s symptoms began when she was 8 months pregnant: constipation, blood in her stool, appetite changes, fatigue, weight loss, cramping, and a strong feeling that something was wrong. For months, she was repeatedly told the symptoms were likely…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Jason’s Survivor Story
This Patient Story video is a survivorship discussion with 2 colorectal cancer survivors, Jason Randall and Amy Hart, focused on living with an ostomy. Jason describes himself as a Stage IV colorectal cancer survivor who was almost 5 years into the experience…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Gene’s Survivor Story
Gene Jones was diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer in 1993, early in the year he turned 51. He had stomach problems and could not go to the bathroom, and colonoscopy could not get past a large tumor that was almost completely blocking his large intestine…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Michelle’s Patient Story
Michelle Cappel was first diagnosed with Stage IV colorectal cancer in 2017. Initial treatment included chemotherapy and curative-intent surgery, and she reached no evidence of disease for about 2.5 years. As she approached the 3-year mark, she developed a…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Michelle’s Survivor Story
Michelle Cappel was a 40-year-old fifth-grade teacher when years of chronic constipation, bloating, and worsening abdominal pain finally led to a Stage IV colorectal cancer diagnosis. Her symptoms had been blamed on antidepressants, possible celiac disease…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer: Maria’s Patient Story
Maria Dupree was 58 when cramping and rectal bleeding led to a proximal rectal cancer diagnosis in December 2022. She had seen doctors a few months earlier, but the first tests did not identify the cause. A colonoscopy was recommended, and Maria scheduled it…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Angelica’s Survivor Story
Angelica Allen’s follow-up story focused on how life changed after Stage III bowel cancer. She was diagnosed in 2018 at age 38, after exhaustion, iron deficiency, bloating, bowel changes, and intermittent bleeding led to emergency evaluation. Treatment began…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Angelica’s Survivor Story
Angelica Allen was 38 when she was diagnosed with Stage III bowel cancer after months of symptoms that were easy to misattribute. She had iron deficiency, severe exhaustion that lasted 7 or 8 months, bloating, bowel-movement changes, and intermittent…
Read this storyStage II Colorectal Cancer: Wendy’s Survivor Story
Two weeks after turning 50, Wendy Tamis Robbins learned she had Stage II colon cancer. Severe iron depletion found during a routine physical led to her first colonoscopy, which found a large cancerous tumor. Wendy underwent surgery to remove the tumor and a…
Read this storyStage II Colorectal Cancer: Stephanie’s Survivor Story
Stephanie Tufano was 38, a running coach and health coach, and training for her second ultramarathon when she began having unusual symptoms. She noticed stomach pains, trouble catching her breath and a rapid heartbeat. A physician friend encouraged her to get…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Jason’s Survivor Story
Jason Randall was diagnosed with Stage IV sigmoid colon cancer on July 17, 2018, after severe abdominal pain and bowel obstruction symptoms led to imaging. About 80% of his liver was covered with metastatic disease, and his sigmoid colon was fully blocked, so…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Bart’s Survivor Story
Bart Wilson was 37 when lower abdominal pain and blood in his stool led to a colonoscopy in January 2020. Doctors found a large tumor blocking much of his colon, and he needed emergency surgery. The next day, he learned he had Stage IV colon cancer that had…
Read this storyStage II Colorectal Cancer: Amanda’s Survivor Story
Amanda was 29 when light IBS-like symptoms and blood in her stool began. She immediately asked whether it could be colon cancer, but was told it was probably hemorrhoids, a fissure, grief, anxiety, or stress. Her symptoms persisted for almost a year. Blood…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer Survivor Story
This woman’s Stage IV colorectal cancer story is about the gap between how someone looks in public and what cancer can feel like in private. People told her she looked good and did not look sick, but she was also living with a colostomy bag and the hidden…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer Patient Story
This young woman was 24 when colon cancer disrupted the future she had been imagining for herself. The story is brief, but the emotional impact is clear: she felt alone, confused, and too young to understand everything happening to her body. She remembered…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Meredith’s Survivor Story
Meredith Huetter was diagnosed with Stage III rectal cancer at 46. Her story focuses less on the full treatment timeline and more on what happens after the most visible parts of treatment are over. She pushed back on language such as “fighter” or “you’re so…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Ryan’s Patient Story
Ryan was diagnosed with Stage IIIC rectal cancer at 47. In this story, he used his experience to challenge the way people joke about colonoscopy or avoid screening because it sounds uncomfortable. He pointed out that newer screening options exist for some…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Amy’s Survivor Story
Amy was 34 when she was diagnosed with Stage IIIB colorectal cancer associated with Lynch syndrome. Treatment was described as a marathon in 3 legs. The first leg was 6 weeks of chemotherapy plus radiation. After a break, she underwent a 9.5-hour operation…
Read this storyStage III MSI-High Colorectal Cancer: Amy’s Patient Story
Amy Hart was 34, a mother of 2, and trying to understand why she felt increasingly “off.” Early bloodwork looked normal, and her symptoms were attributed to anxiety, so she began counseling and focused on mental health. The symptoms kept getting worse. She…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Haley’s Survivor Story
Haley P. was 37, recently postpartum, and raising a 6-month-old and a 3-year-old when symptoms she kept explaining away led to a Stage IIIC colon cancer diagnosis. During pregnancy and after delivery, she had constipation, stomach pain, shortness of breath…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer: Freddy’s Patient Story
Freddy Herrera was 36 when colorectal cancer was detected. Before seeking care, he felt symptoms that were easy to misread: intestinal discomfort, involuntary intestinal muscle movements, and trouble getting through exercise. When he tried to return to the…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Carmen’s Survivor Story
Carmen Susman was active and felt healthy when urinary symptoms unexpectedly led to a Stage IV colorectal cancer diagnosis. In November 2021, he had a renal ultrasound to check for kidney stones. Instead, the test found a mass on his liver. Follow-up tests…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer Patient Story
Leslie became a caregiver in January 2020, when her husband was diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer. Over the next 1,079 days, their family lived through the strain of advanced cancer care while continuing to look for options that could help him. He tried…
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