A Type II diabetic, Alex Ramirez went to his doctor to get a refill of his meds.  When he did, the doctor suggested Alex get blood work because he hadn’t been tested in a long time.  Alex was often feeling tired, so this seemed like a good time for blood work.  Upon receiving the test results, the doctor Alex he was anemic, and suggested Alex undergo a colonoscopy.  That led to the sighting of a small tumor on his colon, and a diagnosis of Stage II colon cancer.  Following surgery, he had to go through a grueling three months of having a colostomy bag.  However, Alex Ramirez achieved survivorship and his health is almost back to what it was before his diagnosis.

 

Alex Ramirez of Denver, Colorado was a Type II diabetic, but otherwise in good health and enjoying life as a radio talkshow host.  He didn’t have to inject insulin, but was taking in pill with a dosage of 10mg a day.  Needing a refill in early 2020, he stopped by his doctor’s office.  The doctor suggested Alex get his blood tested as it hadn’t been tested in a while.  

 

When the test results came back, the doctor said Alex was severely anemic and prescribed iron pills.  Despite knowing the strong iron pills could tear up his stomach, he took them, while the doctor recommended Alex get a colonoscopy, which was performed three days after the blood work.  He was then sent to a GI specialist who said the colonoscopy revealed a small tumor on his colon.  The doctor said the tumor was cancerous, but that he needed to determine the cancer’s staging.  Alex had to wait a stressful 72 hours to find out it was Stage II colon cancer. 

 

With the tests done, the operation was completed, but not without complications.  An infection had grown in the area where the tumor had been, and it was a baseball-sized tumor.  Alex had gone septic, and his temperature and blood pressure had gone way up.  His doctor told Alex to call friends and family and let them know he might not have long to live.  Alex had a second procedure done, this one to clean out the infection.  Three days later, he had yet another infection, meaning he had three infections in less than seventeen days.  The doctor said the third infection had spread to his intestine.

 

After the third infection, the doctor said the care team wanted to let Alex’s intestines rest a bit, but that was going to mean he would have to wear a colostomy bag for approximately three months.  Maintaining and cleaning the bag is an unpleasant and stressful experience, and Alex’s experience was made worse because his hospital did little to teach how to perform these tasks.  He was discharged from hospital after 23 days, but in addition to dealing with the bag, a picc line IV had to be connected to his left arm because as he was discharged, he had e.coli.  

 

Dealing with the ostomy bag, affected his ability to eat and sleep. 

 

Thankfully, his intestinal issues were reversed, and Alex Ramirez was able to get disconnected from the ostomy bag.  Since the reversal, he can now eat, sleep and go to the bathroom like a normal person.  He says he is very grateful that his life is close to what it was before his diagnosis.

 

Additional Resource:

 

Colon Cancer Prevention Project: https://www.coloncancerpreventionproject.org