anyone else had a colonoscopy?

[Laura's Babies]

Those of you who are afraid of it or just think you don't have time.... This test is NOTHING compared to being told you have cancer, just go ask a cancer survivor.. Time? You got time to die?

My brother put it off and it cost him his life, just when he was the happiest that he had ever been. His death was needless and such a waste of a great person. He was only 55 years old when colon cancer killed him.

[ramanth]

I had one years ago after finding blood in my stool.

The stuff to drink to clean you out prior was the worst part for me. That stuff was nasty and I had to choke two glasses down.

I was awake during the procedure and other than some cramping, it wasn't too bad.

[joycenalex]

with a virtual colonscopy you still gotta go thru the prep if they 'see' something on the colon wall and need to do a biopsy. for what it's worth

[Catty1]

Yes, but they use external scanning to view the colon; they don't put an "anal probe" into you, which is the worst of it for many people.

I did prep for my surgery, and it wasn't so bad. I think it's more the thought of drinking the cleanout gunk than anything.

I had a CT scan too, and had to drink a solution over a period of two hours. It tasted exactly like dusty water.

[carole]

Never had one, never hoping to have to have one, here in NZ you only get them if they suspect something is wrong and you visit a specialist, i know however certain tests are available as standard as having a smear in a lot of countries, just waiting for that to happen here, tell me is the stuff you drink anything like the one you have for a barium meal test, i have had that and it was ghastly.

[Jakesmom]

The virtual colonoscopy has not been confirmed to be as effective in assessing risk, and if anything is found, you still have to have a regular colonoscopy for biopsy or polyp removal.

So...unless you really can't, you should have a regular colonoscopy. Its a small price to pay every 5-10 years (depending on your risk) for peace of mind.

Just make sure you get sedation for your test. You don't want to do it totally awake.

Jake's mom

[AdoreMyDogs]

I don't ever want one Not ever, ever, ever!!! I almost hate to get older because then I might actually need to get it done. It is good, however, that they sedate you for it, as I can't imagine anyone would ever get it done while awake.

[Pam]

The virtual colonoscopy has not been confirmed to be as effective in assessing risk, and if anything is found, you still have to have a regular colonoscopy for biopsy or polyp removal.

Then. God forbid, you need to "drink the stuff" again to have those polyps removed. No thank you. I'd choose to only have to do that once.

Gini, good for your friend! Yes men are the worst culprits when it comes to taking care of their health. Your friend is an inspiration and, yes, I can relate to him sitting on the floor in the bathroom. As I said before, you don't want to go too far after drinking that stuff.

I, too, lost a friend to colon cancer. It then spread to her kidneys. She died two months before her daughter was to give birth to her little granddaughter. She was 54.