In 2018, Casandra Costley, then 32, observed rectal bleeding. But, she thought it was a hemorrhoid and by no means thought to inform her physician.
“I ignored it. I had some rectal ache as properly, which I additionally thought was a hemorrhoid,” Costley, 38, of Utah, tells TODAY.com. “It would come and go.”
Then, in February 2024, Costley felt “run down,” misplaced her urge for food and noticed that her bowel habits modified. Slowly, her new toilet habits dramatically impacted her participation in day-to-day life.
Prior to being recognized with Stage 4 colon most cancers, Casandra Costley labored as a journey advisor, serving to folks guide journeys.
“I struggled to perform,” she says. She ultimately visited a gastroenterologist, who carried out a colonoscopy, and he or she realized she had Stage 4 colon most cancers. Since her analysis, she’s been sharing her experiences on social media.
“It’s not one thing that individuals are actually snug speaking about nonetheless, bleeding and bowel habits,” she says. “(That) means it doesn’t get talked about, and so I assumed I can try this. It’s not onerous for me to speak about it.”
Rectal bleeding
When Costley first observed rectal bleeding, she assumed it was a hemorrhoid, as they run in her household.
“I used to be like, ‘Oh, identical to the remainder of my household,’” she says.
Over the years, the bleeding and ache occurred intermittently, what Costley thought was regular. Last yr, she underwent weight reduction surgical procedure and adjusted her food plan, and her signs disappeared.
“I assumed, ‘Oh, perhaps the hemorrhoid healed itself,’” she recollects. “I didn’t know an excessive amount of about it.”
But then the bleeding returned with new signs. Soon, Costley misplaced her urge for food, and her bowel habits modified.
“All day lengthy I felt like I needed to have a bowel motion,” she says. “It was exhausting and actually bizarre, and for some cause I nonetheless didn’t carry it up (to my physician).”
When her signs interfered together with her day by day routine to the purpose the place she struggled to get by means of the day, she requested her urologist to suggest a GI physician. That physician ordered a colonoscopy, and when Costley woke from it, she knew one thing was mistaken.
“He confirmed me the image of my tumor,” she says. “He was like, ‘I’m very involved that this appears like superior colon most cancers, however let’s get a biopsy.’”
She had by no means thought of her bleeding and ache might be most cancers.
“I assumed he was going to inform me I had hemorrhoids or IBS or one thing,” she says. “(Colorectal most cancers) remains to be not on most individuals’s radars.”
The physician additionally scheduled a CT scan and an MRI. Three days after the biopsy, Costley knew what sort most cancers she had — invasive adenocarcinoma, which is the commonest sort of colon and rectal most cancers, in line with the American Cancer Society. The CT scan revealed the most cancers had metastasized to her liver and probably her lung.
Soon, she met with a GI surgeon.
“I used to be considering, ‘Well, they simply must go in and take it out,’” Costley recollects. “When I met the GI surgeon, she defined that the tumor is a T3, which is essentially the most superior sort, as a result of it’s grown by means of the colon … (and) to go in and take it out can be harmful as a result of they will’t get clear margins.”
Instead, the surgeon really helpful Costley meet with an oncologist, who really helpful “aggressive chemo” for 3 months.
After this, she’ll endure scans to see if it is working, and medical doctors will add to her therapy plan.
“If I reply to it and we will get the tumors to shrink down, then they may probably go in and take out the tumor in my colon,” she says.
The Costley household has been utilizing humor as a manner to deal with Casandra Costley’s Stage 4 colon most cancers analysis. Daughter Annika prays to “bless mother’s butt.”
She’s felt intense unintended effects from chemotherapy after just a few rounds of it.
“The chemo makes me fairly sick,” she says. “Because I’m symptomatic from the most cancers, it takes any signs I used to be having and makes them manner worse.”
Often, she feels pangs in her liver, again and hip, and the nausea and lack of urge for food has grow to be “extra intense.” Still, when she feels properly, she tries to train, and feeling ailing hasn’t interfered together with her capacity to mother or father.
“I really feel grateful. I’ve been in a position to get off the bed on daily basis and nonetheless (strive) to get my daughter to highschool on my own after I can,” she says. “I like to do this, nevertheless it’s onerous.”
Costley and her household usually make jokes and attempt to discover the humor and pleasure in life. Her virtually 12-year-old daughter, Annika, says in her nightly prayers, “Please bless mother’s butt.”
“It makes us giggle, nevertheless it additionally brings her consolation, and so we’re utilizing humor to manage,” Costley says. “We perceive the severity of it. It’s too heavy to not giggle about it.”
Colon most cancers in younger folks
Colon most cancers is the second-leading reason behind most cancers deaths in girls underneath age 50, TODAY.com previously reported. Experts stay unsure as to why any such most cancers has been occurring extra usually in younger folks however suspect it’s a mixture of genetics and life-style elements, comparable to being sedentary and a food plan with too many processed meals.
“It’s a minimum of doable that these are the issues driving this. We do see extra males than girls having colorectal most cancers,” Dr. William Dahut, chief scientific officer for the American Cancer Society, advised TODAY.com in 2023. “Whether that’s once more as a result of a poor food plan or weight problems and fewer train is a minimum of a risk.”
As with any sort of most cancers, early detection results in higher outcomes. Recognizing the signs and speaking to a health care provider about them can result in faster analysis.
Symptoms embrace:
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Abdominal ache with no cause
Casandra Costley says that too many individuals are afraid to speak about signs of colon most cancers, comparable to rectal bleeding, ache and elevated bowel motion frequency. She does not really feel such disgrace so she shares her story on social media to assist others.
“Patients don’t essentially carry up the signs,” Dr. David Liska, director of the Young-Onset Colorectal Cancer Center at Cleveland Clinic advised TODAY.com in 2023. “It’s a subject that folks aren’t snug speaking about.”
‘A membership you do not need to belong to’
When Costley goes to the infusion middle for chemotherapy, she’s usually the youngest particular person there, which might really feel very isolating. Sharing her story on social media has linked her with different younger folks with most cancers.
“It’s a membership that you simply don’t need to belong to, the most cancers membership,” she says. “But it’s a extremely, actually supportive neighborhood and … there are such a lot of folks serving to me to grasp what I’m going by means of.”
Costley additionally appreciates listening to from individuals who have lived with Stage 4 colon most cancers for a very long time.
“Those are my favourite tales as a result of I’ve a lot hope that I’ll get to do this, too,” she says. “Their tales give me hope and provides me much more cause to battle.”
Since her analysis, Costley has found “how treasured life actually is.”
“I’m an necessary a part of our treasured life in our dwelling, and I’m not saying that to be immodest,” she says. “It’s helped me understand our complete home of playing cards will crumble if one thing occurs to me. So I simply need to battle onerous to have the ability to say and be an necessary a part of my little household.”
Having “the world’s most supportive husband,” dad and mom, siblings, step dad and mom and step siblings signifies that Costley enjoys an enormous help system as she continues her most cancers remedies.
She hopes that by sharing her journey on social media she’s going to assist others be taught extra about colon most cancers and discover hope when going through a worrisome analysis.
Having the help of her household helps Casandra Costley as she grapples with Stage 4 colon most cancers and therapy.
“I hope that anybody who might be in the identical boat learns that these are signs to go to your physician and speak about and likewise not be afraid to speak about it,” she says. “Life is so treasured and so fragile and even in a extremely, actually scary, onerous time, there’s nonetheless a lot magnificence to be discovered and happiness available.”
This article was initially revealed on TODAY.com
