Cancer survivor shares his story with other patients

Resident Giuseppe Farina was first diagnosed at age 42

Maybe you've seen the ads on television. A polyp is on the loose until doctors chase him down and capture him.

The polyp character is funny and cute but there's nothing funny and cute about what he represents.

Ask Giuseppe Farina. Thirty years ago he met the polyp man, colon cancer, face to face.

Farina was a career Army man then, only 42. He was experiencing bowel problems and went to the doctor's office. The doctor felt a mass and ordered an immediate biopsy.

Within days, Farina was on the operating table. Even though the biopsy showed he had cancer, Farina said the news didn't have much of an impact.

"They told me colostomy," he said. "I'm thinking 'Colostomy? What's a colostomy?' I had no idea what it was until after the surgery."

Colostomy, a surgical opening (stoma) through the wall of the abdomen into the colon, provides a new path for waste material to leave the body.

In 1972, medical procedures were not as sophisticated as they are now and Farina was in the hospital 31 days, 12 of those in the intensive care unit. It was six days before he was allowed out of bed and encouraged to walk around.

Six months later he was back in the hospital with blockage due to adhesions.

"That was worse than the first time because I knew what they'd do to my body," he said. "But in a way, it was a blessing. They had a second look at me and made sure I was clear (of cancer)."

Good thing, too, because his doctors did not have him undergo chemotherapy or radiation therapy.

After a colostomy, patients wear a special bag to collect body waste. Some patients need a temporary colostomy to allow the lower colon or rectum to heal after surgery. About 15 percent of colorectal cancer patients, like Farina, require a colostomy for the rest of their lives.

Dr. Paul Michael, oncologist, said people don't like to talk about, even think about, their bowel problems. Yet, in Nevada, colon cancer is the second leading cause of death, after lung cancer.

"Some people see blood in their stool and think it's just hemorrhoids," he said. "They pass it off as that when it should be seriously considered. Colon cancer is extremely preventable and treatable if caught in the early stages."

Michael said patients can opt for a CAT scan if they're uncomfortable with the thought of a colonoscopy.

According to the National Cancer Institute, colorectal cancer is more common in people older than 50. However, colorectal cancer can occur at younger ages, even, in rare cases, in the teens.

The disease appears to be associated with high fat, low fiber diets.

Polyps are benign growths on the inner wall of the colon and rectum. Some types of polyps increase a person's risk of developing colorectal cancer.

Women who have had ovarian, uterine or breast cancer have an increased chance of developing colorectal cancer. Also, a person who has already had colorectal cancer may develop this disease a second time, though recent drug therapies are helpful in keeping it at bay. Heredity may be a factor.

Studies are looking at smoking cessation, use of dietary supplements, use of aspirin or similar medicines, decreased alcohol consumption and increased physical activity to see if these approaches can prevent colorectal cancer.

A fecal occult blood test is used to check for hidden blood in the stool. Sometimes cancers or polyps can bleed, and FOBT is used to detect small amounts of bleeding.

All last month, American Cancer Society, through a partnership with Sunrise Hospital, gave away free FOBT kits. If any blood was found in the stool, further testing was done to rule out cancer.

The fact that he's had a colostomy does not restrict Farina from traveling, eating his favorite foods or enjoying sports.

"It's not the end of the world," he said.

The National Cancer Institute Web site is www.cancer.gov. The American Cancer Society can be reached at (800) 227-2345.


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