Thankfully there happened to be a colorectal surgeon on standby at the time. He knew it needed emergency surgery and for the pressure to be released, he later said I was within minutes of having a complete bowel rupture.” He recalls.

Pathology later confirmed that the blockage was a tumour and had spread to Brendan’s surrounding lymph nodes.  

Brendan says he feels he got a lucky break “The tumour had grown ‘across’ rather than ‘along’ my colon - which is why I got the sudden blockage. But the tumour had undoubtedly been there for some time, and would almost certainly have been caught if I had had a colonoscopy from age 45, which is now the best-practice recommendation in the U.S.

I was also incredibly lucky that my surgeon was able to join the colon together - after removing around 30cm - so I didn't need a stoma.”
Prior to his emergency surgery, Brendan notes some symptoms he experienced “I had two red-flag symptoms for a day or two before I got the complete blockage, which in hindsight, I should have been aware were urgent.

My bowel movements were ssuddenly and then progressively getting thinner and thinner. My stomach noises were also so loud, we had to turn the volume up on the telly! In some ways it was a positive that my symptoms happened so quickly and so severely, I had no choice, I had to go straight to the hospital. There are so many people who have more general symptoms for months and are told it’s related to stress or IBS.” He says.
 

After Brendan recovered from his surgery, he had 12 rounds of FolFox chemotherapy over six months “This was really tough but I got through it with a great team, they always reminded me they were there to support me. They told me I shouldn’t be suffering, if there were side effects, they would give me something to manage that side effect. 

They also told me it was really important to get my 10,000 steps in each day, that walking was really vital for helping my bowel recover. They also said to be really well hydrated, particularly during chemotherapy. I think I drank three litres of water each day. I remember tracking this daily, it made me feel empowered. This was something I could actively do to help me feel better.”

Brendan also found great support online with others who were going through a similar diagnosis “I was very open about what I was going through, which I really recommend. At the beginning I felt sorry for myself, but then I got to know others and I realised that my diagnosis was not as bad and I was actually quite lucky. It was a total reframing.

I remember speaking to my oncologist and thinking he was quite dismissive and cold. However I later realised as I got to know him that he was this way, because he knew I was a routine case. Another time I saw him sit down for an hour in the chemo ward with a woman who was near end of life.  It all clicked for me then.”

Brendan is currently doing well and is raising awareness around the signs and symptoms of bowel cancer “I've been extensively tested, scanned and scoped over the past years. In May, I will hopefully have a five-year-clear record. I think it’s really important for people to push for their own checks and if you can at all, book in for regular colonoscopies.  This screening tool is incredible. They can see a things that might potentially become cancer and remove them, which is remarkable. 

I also think it’s really important that people overcome their squeamishness about this process. It’s an easy, non- painful, non-invasive way of screening for bowel cancer. It can stop a cancer becoming a cancer.”