Reversing a Colostomy After Cancer Surgery: Is It Possible?

Anyone have this done successfully?

I woke up after debulking surgery for ovarian cancer to find the doctor had installed a colostomy. The nurse in the ICU said the surgeon wrote "reversible stoma." The surgeon says otherwise and keeps changing the story, to the point that I do not know what to believe. At first, he said he only took out a small piece, but because of my anatomy, there was too much tension, and reconnecting failed, so he had to do the colostomy, but that it might be possible to reverse after my insides adjusted. A few days later, he said there is only a small chance. Fast forward another few days, and he says he does not recommend reversal because the cancer would come back in the small bowel. (Makes no sense to me because the stoma is on the descending colon). My primary care doctor made a remark that the surgeon "took out most of the colon." I looked at the pathology report (still waiting for the surgical report) and it says 29 cm of sigmoid colon was removed. I confronted the surgeon again, and he now says that most of the sigmoid and descending colon are removed, and there is a "residual rectum." Though he previously said that he only took a very small piece of the rectum. It has been 4 weeks since the surgery, and the stool is sometimes mushy, but mostly firm to well-formed, so it seems like worth looking into at least. My oncologist agreed to refer me to a GI surgeon to see about getting a reversal, if the chemo works and I go into remission.

I do not think I will be able to adjust to this bag. I have to constantly empty it, and it keeps leaking because the stool is firm and pushes under the wafer. I am getting really tired of the sensation of things exploding from my side, and I am sick of the smell! My insurance does not cover ostomy supplies, and if I have to pay full price, at this rate it will be hundreds of dollars each month just for the supplies. I might not be able to afford to go back to work, even if I could! I have almost fully recovered from the surgery, which also included a splenectomy and full hysterectomy (I heal pretty fast), and if it were not for the stupid colostomy, I could be back to my regular life in a couple of weeks. As it is, I now have no life.

Hoping for some good news for once!

well i have some good news.... you WILL be able to adjust to the bag if you will give it a little time. the learning curve is about a year at least to get reliable seal, most of this time is because most newbies WONT take advice and must learn everything the hard way.

you must change your lifestyle but it will be well worth it.  what you eat, when you eat, how much you eat...even the type soap you use will affect your ostomy performance.  its quite possible that you would qualify for irrigation{ask your surgeon} if so , that will make your life almost normal again.

i cant offer an opinion on a reversal, but many things affect that..in my situation there wasnt enough colon left near the rectum to reconnect, even though they only took out a small amount of it, my cancer location was simply too low.   have faith....ask questions, LISTEN to the answers. i {and most everyone here} know what you are going through...we will help you. you CAN learn to have a full, active lifestyle again. 

If only I actually had someone to give me reliable advice. I think if it takes a year to get this under control I will be giving up on life altogether. i may not have many years left, and I had hoped to be able to actually do something fun or useful, but instead I am having to sit here all day worrying about poop.

Hello knotagain. Thanks for your post. It sounds as if your medics  have not been entirely striaght with you from the beginning - whch is a pity because people need to have trust in those who purport to have their interests at heart.  MMSH has given some good advice but I would say that everyone adjusts (or not) to new situations in different ways and over different time-spans. The physical management of a stoma is one part of the equation but from my point of view the phsychological and emotional adjustment is by far the greater obstacle for some people. It can be very easy to percieve all the negative aspects when your life has been distrupted in ways that you would not want for yourself and it can be hard for some to turn that experience round to make it seem positive.  However, what's done is done! and in order to move on and have a life (allbeit different) one needs to put the past behind and get on with the future. Positivity can only help in getting the most out of that future whatever it may be and I hope for your sake you will be able to refocus and acquire a determiination to make the most of what you have rather than dwel on what you've lost.

MMSH also mentioned irrigation and I would second that suggestion if it is possible for you to do as it will free you up from all that 'bag' stuff and help you live a relatively 'normal' life.

 Best wishes  Bill 

I have also had issues with firm output running underneath the wafer. This eased up a LOT when I added more fiber to my diet, and cut down on the pasta. It is a balancing act, getting the right amount of fiber in your diet to control the consistency of your output. If I ever have very watery output - 2 meals of noodles with pesto will solidify it right up! When it is too solid, try adding in brown rice instead of white, oatmeal, whole grain bread instead of white, etc.

As for the cost of supplies, I know what you mean. I use Edgepark only because my supplies are fully covered and Edgepark is in-network. However, I have seen the invoices, and I can tell you they are more than twice what you can find supplies for online. When my insurance starts a new year in April and I again have a $3000 deductible, I guarantee I will be using someplace other than Edgepark. In fact, I have found some good prices through ebay, believe it or not. There are companies out there that buy extra supplies (unused, and still in the box) from people who no longer need them - such as after reversals or if the patient passes - and resell them on ebay. They also offer to buy, so if your reversal does happen, you now know what to do with your excess supplies!

Good luck, hang in there, and things will get better. I am just sorry you had such a bad experience with your health care providers not being honest with you.

Staying Hydrated with an Ostomy with LeeAnne Hayden | Hollister