I was diagnosed with stage 2a colon cancer in May of 2020 at the age of 54. I am a Pharmacist at HCA Florida Citrus Hospital in Inverness, Florida.

 

When I woke up from my colonoscopy and was told I had a 5 cm mass in my colon I was in shock. My gastroenterologist – Dr. Trupti Shinde – said she was sending me to a great surgeon and she gently patted my legs and said that I would be OK. That’s when the whirlwind started. The surgeon – Dr. Parth Patel – sent me to an oncologist. The oncologist sent me for a PET scan (you can’t have surgery yet if it has spread outside the colon). Everyone asked if I had been to Moffitt Cancer Center for a second opinion. So I went there, too. So much running around. So many questions. So many options. But no support system to help guide me, other than my family, friends and coworkers who were a great emotional support system but did not have any experience with colon cancer to help give me medical guidance. As a pharmacist, I knew a little about cancer and chemotherapy but it was not my area of specialty. Eventually I found Colontown on Facebook and they have been a great source of information and support. Then I found the other colon cancer groups, which I have outlined in the resources section.

 

After I recovered from surgery and had time to do research and educate myself on colon cancer, I decided that I wanted to help others prevent what I was going through and to help those who were about to go through what I went through. I asked my doctors’ offices if they knew of any local support groups for colon cancer and they all said no. Dr. Shinde said she would like to help me start a support group and Dr. Patel agreed to help.