Talk to others

Your GP or nurse may be able to reassure you if you have questions, or you may find it helpful to talk to a trained counsellor, psychologist or specialist telephone helpline operator. Your GP surgery will have information on these. Some people find it helpful to talk to other people with bowel cancer at a local support group or through an internet chat room.

Want to know more?

• Bowel Cancer UK: Patient to patient support.
• Beating Bowel Cancer: Patient Voices group. 

Emotional effects

Having cancer can cause a range of emotions. These may include shock, anxiety, relief, sadness and depression. Different people deal with serious problems in different ways. It is hard to predict how knowing you have cancer will affect you. However, you and your loved ones may find it helpful to know about the feelings that people diagnosed with cancer have reported.

Want to know more?

• Macmillan: The emotional effects of cancer.

Recovering from colon or rectal surgery

Surgeons and anaesthetists have found that using an "enhanced recovery programme" after bowel cancer surgery helps patients recover more quickly.

Many hospitals now use this programme. It involves giving you more information before the operation about what to expect, avoiding giving you strong laxatives to clean the bowel before surgery, and in some cases giving you a sugary drink two hours before the operation to give you energy. 

During and after the operation, the anaesthetist controls the amount of IV fluid you need very carefully, and after the operation you will be given painkillers that allow you to get up and out of bed by the next day.

Most people will be able to start to eat a light diet the day after their operation.

To reduce the risk of deep vein thrombosis (blood clots in the legs), you may be given special compression stockings that help prevent blood clots, or a regular injection with heparin until you are fully mobile.

A nurse or physiotherapist will help you get out of bed and regain your strength so you can go home again within a few days.

With the enhanced recovery programme, most people are well enough to go home within five to six days of their operation. The timing depends on when you and the doctors and nurses looking after you agree that you are well enough to go home.

Want to know more?

• Beating Bowel Cancer: Returning home after surgery (PDF, 44Kb).
• Cancer Research UK: After your operation for bowel cancer.

Coping with a colostomy

If you need a colostomy, you may feel worried about how you look and how others will react to you. Information and advice about living with a stoma - including stoma care, stoma products and 'stoma-friendly' diets - is available via the ileostomy and colostomy topics.

Want to know more?

• Cancer Research UK: Coping with a stoma after bowel cancer.
• Colostomy Association.

Diet after bowel surgery

If you have had part of your colon removed, it is likely that your stools (faeces) will be looser because one of the functions of the colon is to absorb water from the stools. This may mean that you experience repeated episodes of diarrhoea.

You should inform your care team if diarrhoea becomes particularly troublesome because medication is available to help control symptoms.

You may find that some foods upset your bowels, particularly during the first few months after your operation.

Different foods can upset different people, but food and drink that is commonly known to cause problems include:

• rich and fatty food,
• fruit and vegetables that are high in fibre, such as beans, cabbages, apples and bananas, and 
• fizzy drinks, such as cola and beer.

You may find it useful to keep a food diary to record the effects of different foods on your bowel.

If you find that you are having continual problems with your bowels as a result of your diet, and/or you are finding it difficult to maintain a healthy diet, you should contact your care team. You may need to be referred to a dietitian for further advice.

Want to know more?

• Cancer Research UK: Diet after bowel cancer.
• Beating Bowel Cancer: Diet and bowel cancer. 
• Bowel Cancer UK: Eating after bowel surgery (PDF, 184kb).

Sex and bowel cancer

Having cancer and its treatment may affect how you feel about relationships and sex. Although most people are able to enjoy a normal sex life after bowel cancer treatment, if you have had a colostomy you may feel self-conscious or uncomfortable.

Talking about how you feel with your partner may help you both to support each other. Or you may feel that you'd like to talk to someone else about your feelings, your doctor or nurse will be able to help.

Want to know more?

• Cancer Research UK: Sex and bowel cancer.

Financial concerns

A diagnosis of cancer can cause money problems because you are unable to work or someone you are close to has to stop working to look after you. There is financial support available for carers and for you if you have to stay off work for a while or have to stop work because of your sickness. 

Free prescriptions

People being treated for cancer are entitled to apply an exemption certificate giving free prescriptions for all medication, including that which treats unrelated conditions.

The certificate is valid for five years and you can apply for a certificate by speaking to your GP or cancer specialist.

Want to know more?

• Directgov: Incapacity and other benefits.
• Carers Direct.
• Macmillan: Financial issues.
• Cancer Research UK: Free prescriptions for people with cancer.

Dealing with dying

If you are told that there is nothing more that can be done to treat your bowel cancer, your GP will still provide you with support and pain relief. This is called palliative care. Support is also available for your family and friends.

Want to know more?

• Macmillan: Caring for someone with cancer.
• Marie Curie Cancer Care.
• Live Well: End of life care.