I'm a senior guy, and I had a colostomy almost 13 yrs ago. The post-op exam
plus a biopsy of the removed rectum and portion of the attached colon showed me
to be cancer-free. Yet , every 2-3 years I've been going for a repeat
colonoscopy to check for development of any polyps and have them removed since a
polyp could , unchecked, develop into a cancer. Over the years such check-ups
have resulted in the removal of a few polyps now and then. A rectal-colo
surgeon, well experienced, recommends his patients to get a polyp checkup no
longer than every 3 years. .............With regards to leg swelling: the first
time that I visited a cardioogist, he determined that I had too much water
retained in my legs. He put me on a daily regimen of an active diuretic,
Demadex. The swelling (due to water) went down, resulting in a substantial
weight loss. ...........The left side of my abdomen is also bulging out. Yet,
in my case over the years I have had numerous hernia repairs, and my bel
ly looks like a road map. I guess too much abdomen wall muscle was cut which
might result without the proper support of all the "innards". ................My
e-mail device is devoid of a hard drive so I can't chat, but I can draw from a
lot of first-hand knowledge from my experiences and management of my colostomy
if you would like to exchange e-mails. I would like very much to follow your
ongoing progress. .........Ken B. from N.J.