I woke up from the anesthesia to find Margaret softly crying in the chair next to my bed. I had gone in for a simple but embarassing procedure to enlarge my spinchter so an anal fissure could heal. It had been bleeding for 6 months, but it was just spots so there was nothing to worry about, right? The spots were bright red and everything I read and was told said that was a good sign. I saw my doctor 3 times about the problem and he was convinced it was a fissure issue. I tried the salves (Witch Hazel, Nitroglycerin and Nifedipine) but none stopped the bleeding and the pain got increasingly worse (a literal pain in the ass!). I was now taking 6-8 650 mg Tylenol a day. I was beginning to worry about how long this would last and how many times per day I'd have to change my underwear.
Initially I was referred to Dr. Ghardi at the G.I. Clinic in Everett by my GP. I didn't know this at the time, but Dr. Ghardi had performed my colonoscopy in March, 2006. He remembered me, but not surprisingly I didn't remember him. My face had been in a different direction I guess. Dr Ghardi took a quick look "behind" and seemed to again confirm the fissure and told me about the surgical options. What was troubling were the potential after effects which included incontinence and extreme discomfort. He recommended we try another salve and if that didn't work then we could look at the surgical option. He wanted to check with the senior doctor at the clinic for other ideas and brought Dr. Marsidi in for the consult. He didn't feel the salve would work and suggested a procedure where he probed in the sphincter with his fingers and literally stretched it. I had 2 thoughts...no matter how much he makes, it's not enough and how large are his fingers. Luckily he's Asian. We set up the procedure for July 1st.
I checked in with Margaret and we waited and made all of the usual jokes. Finally they came for me. When I went into the operating room, Dr. Marsidi spoke to me for a couple of minutes and prepared for the procedure. He felt inside "that area" and even at that moment something didn't seem quite right about his vibration. He said something to the anesthesiaologist about the dosage they should use which also seemed odd to me. Looking back, I think he told her to use a lower dosage because he already had a sense there was a different problem. Apparently he was right because after I was asleep, he probed with his camera, confirmed his suspicion and clocked out of surgery in less than 3 minutes!
He went to speak to Margaret and told her that he wouldn't be continuing with the procedure and had found a tumor in my colon. By the shape and texture he felt certain it was cancerous and had performed a biopsy. He would sent it out to confirm the growth and thought we should have a response by the following Tuesday (today was Thursday). He was calm and gentle with her, sad for the shock she was feeling and apologized for the pain she was feeling and for the previous incorrect diagnosises. During this time they wheeled me out of the operating area and into post op where Margaret waited to tell me the news.
I woke up from the anesthesia to find Margaret softly crying in the chair next to my bed. I was surprised at how alert I felt. No stupor, no heavy eyes...it was over already. I was healed!!!!! I don't think I'll ever forget the next moment. She looked at me, crying and softly told me they found a tumor and I had cancer. 3 words and I knew everything was going to change for me. "You have cancer."
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