If you have an advanced stage of colorectal cancer or another disease of the colon, you may be offered a colectomy, which is an operation to remove part or all of the colon.
An operation to remove part of the colon is called a subtotal colectomy and an operation to remove all of it is a total colectomy. Proctocolectomy is surgery to remove both the colon and the rectum.
If you’re having a subtotal colectomy, then the ends of your colon will be sewn together, known as a resection. The removal of the entire colon necessitates a more complicated resection called an Ileostomy. The surgeon will make an interior abdominal wall incision and pull the stumps of the large intestine through it and then attach to the anterior abdominal wall. Any waste will then be expelled into a colostomy bag which is attached through a hole in your abdomen called a stoma.This means that you won’t be able to sit on the toilet anymore to empty your bowels, but you will still be able to urinate normally.
There are two ways a surgeon can perform the operation. The first way is by traditional, open surgery by making a six inch incision in your lower abdomen. The newer and preferable way is by laparoscopy. Three or four small cuts will be made, through which a microscopic camera will be passed. This transmits pictures of your colon onto a computer screen so that the surgeon can see what he is doing. He can also pass tiny instruments through the cuts to carry out the operation.
After Surgery:
You will have to spend a week in the hospital to give your digestive system a chance to heal. This is major surgery. You will also need to be monitored by medical staff to make sure you aren’t developing side-effects.
Side-effects include:
• Tears in the stitches that reconnect your internal organs.
• Injuries to nearby organs, such as the bladder.
• Blood clots
• Excessive bleeding
• Post-operative infection
• Allergies or sickness caused by anaesthetic
• Sometime after surgery there is a small risk of bowel obstruction caused by scar tissue.
Most colostomy bags can be removed once the patient has fully recovered, unless they have had a total colectomy, which thankfully is quite rare. The majority of colon cancer cases can be stopped before such surgery is necessary, by early detection and removal of polyps.
Joanna is a freelance health writer for The Mother magazine and Suite 101 with a column on infertility, http://infertility.suite101.com/. She is author of the book, 'Breast Milk: A Natural Immunisation,' and co-author of an educational resource on disabled parenting, in addition to running a charity for people damaged by vaccines or medical mistakes.