Colorectal Cancer: Jennifer's Survivor Story

What happened, in summary

Jennifer Gerres, 32, was a podiatric surgery resident when she developed pain and nausea that progressed to passing clotted blood and severe cramps. Her husband urged her to call Cleveland Clinic’s same-day appointment line, and the care team convinced her to be seen quickly. At Cleveland Clinic’s Independence Family Health Center, a colorectal surgeon recommended colonoscopy. The test showed a large cancer in the sigmoid colon, which explained her symptoms. Jennifer was referred to a colorectal specialist at Cleveland Clinic’s main campus. Based on her CT scan, he recommended surgery as soon as possible. Two weeks after the same-day appointment, Jennifer had a laparoscopic sigmoid colectomy, a minimally invasive operation to remove the sigmoid colon. The tumor was large, but it had not penetrated the surface of the colon. After surgery, Jennifer and her husband were relieved that the full pathology report was all clear. A formal stage, chemotherapy, radiation and biomarker testing were not specified. As of June 2012, Jennifer described going from a cancer diagnosis on Monday to not having any cancer 2 weeks later. The rapid coordination across Cleveland Clinic locations helped her receive diagnosis and surgery quickly.