Colonoscopy findings, concerns etc

[Anonymous]

50 something DH, first colonoscopy. (Did poop box prior with normal findings).

Five polyps, four were standard small ones, removed. One polyp doc called a mass. 30mm wide, on a stem. He was concerned about it and said it would be problematic to remove at the surgery center bc of size and bleed risk. He took biopsies of the large one. He also said that he wants biopsies of the smaller ones too. The large one, looks like it has a cloud type top like a cumulus cloud with many "bubbles" in terms of shape, and you can see capillaries and even a yellowish color and slightly rough appearance and a couple dark speckles. Color seems uneven.. Hard to describe it but we have pics. He said he's not too worried at this point and that we need to wait for final word on pathology. But that maybe we came in nick of time. He said we have to go to hospital to get it removed by a surgeon bc it will start to cause obstruction issues soon even assuming it were benign. He said don't worry much and that he'd let us know in a couple weeks. And then we can proceed to next steps. I lookedbat pics of benign tumors vs malignant ones and it didn't look too good. But what do I know.

Thoughts of those who have had similar experiences? I personally think he thinks it's malignant and didn't want to remove it. Doesn't cancer have robust blood supply? He expressed concern about bleeding and how it would be risky to remove it.

[Anonymous]

They only remove small ones during a colonoscopy. It’s not uncommon to have to have a surgical removal of a larger polyp.

The rest, I don’t know. Good luck to your family.

[Anonymous]

Whatever it is today was the first step towards resolving the issue. Good kuck

[Anonymous]

They always remove the small ones and biopsy them.
The big one...if it is cancer they don't want to hack away at it and leave some. They want to see if it penetrates the colon wall. And if it's that big, they really do need to use a surgeon.
Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Sounds concerning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:50 something DH, first colonoscopy. (Did poop box prior with normal findings).

Five polyps, four were standard small ones, removed. One polyp doc called a mass. 30mm wide, on a stem. He was concerned about it and said it would be problematic to remove at the surgery center bc of size and bleed risk. He took biopsies of the large one. He also said that he wants biopsies of the smaller ones too. The large one, looks like it has a cloud type top like a cumulus cloud with many "bubbles" in terms of shape, and you can see capillaries and even a yellowish color and slightly rough appearance and a couple dark speckles. Color seems uneven.. Hard to describe it but we have pics. He said he's not too worried at this point and that we need to wait for final word on pathology. But that maybe we came in nick of time. He said we have to go to hospital to get it removed by a surgeon bc it will start to cause obstruction issues soon even assuming it were benign. He said don't worry much and that he'd let us know in a couple weeks. And then we can proceed to next steps. I lookedbat pics of benign tumors vs malignant ones and it didn't look too good. But what do I know.

Thoughts of those who have had similar experiences? I personally think he thinks it's malignant and didn't want to remove it. Doesn't cancer have robust blood supply? He expressed concern about bleeding and how it would be risky to remove it.

Do not settle for "I let you know in a couple weeks" as an answer.
Pathology results should not take more than 5 days.
Doc should already have referred your DH to a surgeon. Regardless, you need to make an appointment with a colorectal surgeon.
Only after pathology will you know if you need to make an appointment with an oncologist (although I had a cauliflower-looking mass and my doc and surgeon encouraged me to make the oncologist appt before the pathology report was back.)
I'd be happy to answer any questions. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They only remove small ones during a colonoscopy. It’s not uncommon to have to have a surgical removal of a larger polyp.

The rest, I don’t know. Good luck to your family.

+1 people come to the hospital for removal of larger ones.

[Anonymous]

God bless.

[Anonymous]

On a stem sound promising. Mass in the muscle would be much more worrisome. That said, he should do frequent ones after this. 5 is a ton and not good.

[Anonymous]

From what I know he did the right thing. As others mentioned you only remove small ones at a colonoscopy. They usually do one every 30-60 minutes tops. You want a scheduled surgery where a trained surgeon takes his time with a larger one, not a GI doctor. Just because it's larger doesn't mean it's cancer, but this is a blessing because a non-cancerous polyp can cause problems as it grows. Did he have any symptoms. If somehow this is cancer, thank goodness it was caught, and you are moving forward. Please keep us posted.

[Anonymous]

Posted too soon. I have been through the pathology thing with a different issue with my child. I think they give you a longer time to wait so you aren't anxious and expecting it right away. If there is a serious issue, they get back to you pretty quickly, but if there are too many emergencies going on, giving a long range to wait buys them a little time. I think it's fine to call in a week if you haven't heard. Also, check portal periodically. Sometimes normal results appear there days before anyone calls.

[Anonymous]

Posting again to say I do know someone who was told right after colonoscopy and before pathology report the doctor was sure it was cancer. So my guess is the doctor doesn't think it is, but he cannot tell you it isn't because surprises happen, and it is large. Did he have any symptoms? Also, there is some sort of genetic condition where your body makes many polyps. I would ask if he needs to be tested for that. Not sure if this is any consolation, but every time my grandfather went for colonoscopies, he had to get anywhere from 2-6 removed and he never developed cancer. I think he did have one removed surgically.

[Anonymous]

Hi OP, im glad to hear your husband had his colonoscopy before the polyp could grow even bigger. Have you heard back from the doctor yet?

As others have said, it’s not uncommon to have larger polyps removed at a hospital.

Curious if your husband’s doctor is a colorectal surgeon or a gastroenterologist? If a gastro, they might feel more comfortable having this done by a surgeon.

[Anonymous]

Just want to say good luck to your DH.

PSA to everyone don’t do the poop test.

I’m also 50 and we were supposed to go at 45. Do not delay. I was terrified of the procedure and honestly, it was easy. Worst part for me was no food for 2 days.

Hope all is ok with DH.

[Anonymous]

I would go into next appointment with an excellent colorectal surgeon. You need to be prepared for the worst case scenario. My brother had the same scenario. Thank god he had an excellent doctor. He came out of surgery without a bag but they removed 7 inches of his colon at age 46.

The only reason we all had colonoscopies is because my mom was misdiagnosed with colon cancer. All of her children were told to get tested ASAP. The surgeon told my brother my mom saved his life.