Why we need to talk more about anal cancer

With the help of your blog, I have come to know about to prevent from anal cancer. It is said that prevention is better than cure and in your this blog, you have told the steps how to protect ourselves from anal cancer. Thanks you so much. This is really very much useful post for every visitor.

This is me! I was diagnosed with anal cancer in February of this year. In November of last year I noticed bleeding every time I went to the loo and found a lump which I assumed was piles. I tried over the counter treatments which had no effect so in January of this year I went to see my GP. She was brilliant! She didn’t think it was piles but didn’t mention cancer. According to her it looked like a wart like growth. I was referred to a consultant who agreed with the GP and performed surgery to remove the growth. It was only one they analysed the growth that they found it to be cancerous.

Oddly it was a cancerous tumour inside a wart like growth. Yes there was evidence of the HPV virus but no I’ve never had anal sex. I’ve also never had unprotected sex and you can count the number of sexual partners on one hand so it’s not down to promiscuity. While I haven’t been shouting my illness from the rooftops I’ve not been secretive about it either (the big foam ring cushion on my seat at work rather gives something away) and it is something that needs to be aired so that people are more aware. When you tell someone you have cancer it always gets a shock reaction. Add the word “anal” to that and you can really freak some people out. But why? It’s just another body part.

I was lucky. Because I went to my GP when I did and because she referred me straight away I was dealt with and the lump was removed. It took two operations to be sure they’d got it all but I’ve not had to have chemo or anything and now I’m into the monitoring phase. If you find anything out of the ordinary you really shouldn’t be squeamish about it. You need to see your GP so that it gets dealt with.

Informative and honest article

I had never heard of anal cancer before reading this article. it was presented honestly and I thank you for it. The more we know about any disease the better for everybody – sufferers and non-sufferers alike. Research is still ongoing for cancer and I appreciate the progress of that research being reported honestly. I would rather read it via a Cancer Research UK article than in a newspaper that may only pick up on the more ‘sensationalist’ issues.

Thanks everyone for your comments.

Hi Stella,
We apologise for any upset or confusion we may have caused. Cancer is a complex set of diseases. For some cancers, lifestyle can play an important role, and is one aspect of the disease that we have some control over. But that doesn’t mean lifestyle choices are always the cause of cancer; and there are cases of anal cancer that aren’t linked to any of these risk factors. Exposure to HPV and being a smoker have both been shown to increase the risk of developing anal cancer, but that doesn’t mean they’re responsible in every case. For more information or support, you can speak to one of our Cancer Information Nurses on 0808 800 4040. We have also spoken with our supporter services team who have unsubscribed you from our mailing list, but if you have any further queries please contact them on 0300 123 1022.

Nick Peel, Cancer Research UK

Mrs A needs to calm down and look at the bigger picture! Ok so the GENERAL mail did not apply to her, but it would have to an awful lot of people so just disregard it because they weren’t saying that you particularly had done those things hence u got what you got! Absolutely fabulous Mrs A is on the mend now but getting on your high horse and taking money away from other cancer sufferers is rather narrow minded!

Thank you for raising this issue again. I was diagnosed with anal cancer nearly four years ago, and suffered huge embarrassment about the ‘a’ word. I used to refer to it as a rare form of bowel cancer. And then people would be surprised: ‘but you have such a healthy lifestyle! How could you possibly get bowel cancer?’ (as if cancer is our fault!) Unfortunately I did not present early enough and it has now metastasized. My fault entirely – but important to point out that I did not have ‘bleeding from the bottom’, as you so coyly put it. I had altered bowel habit. Luckily when I did go to my GP, too late, she referred me right away, partly because I was over 60. Younger patients I know of, some only in their 30’s, have been fobbed off by their GP with ‘it’s only piles’. GPs do need more training to be able to recognise the symptoms.

Hereby lies the problem. Mrs Appleby is insulted and CS has lost a good supporter. as she, quite rightly in my opinion, does not want her past suffering to be linked to a suggestion of permissive or alternative lifestyle. What is wrong with keeping anal cancer within the umbrella bowel cancer?. Do we have to know every individual place that cancer can strike? If someone has rectal bleeding, isn’t it enough at the first point to consider bowel cancer? I am not an old fuddy duddy. Look what happened to haemophiliacs people who contacted HIV and AIDS through blood transfusions a long time ago. They always seemed to be explaining that they were not drug users or gay. I am not being political here but the very fact that you – Greg – mentioned ” a virus usually transmitted through sexual activity ” is without doubt going to raise a lot of emotions one way or another.

It has to be worth extending hpv vaccination to boys. If this doesn’t happen gay young men are effectively being discriminated against.

These are ridiculous taboo’s, and to be honest, I don’t think the majority of people would be offended reading about them. I’m 48, and yesterday was the first time I saw a picture of a person showing their colostomy bag – I don’t understand what the problem is. Where any illness is concerned, be LOUD and PROUD and get the message out there. Of course the media can’t be relied upon for much, let alone telling the truth, so let us start it by social media. I just tried to share this article on Facebook, but I can’t share it to my own page, only send it to others – we can start there and then make our own personal campaigns to get the word out.

Maybe David Cameron and Boris Johnson should be appraised of thi,s with their support for Gay Pride. )
Of course there are always exceptions like Mrs Appleby (beneath

Hi I am a married woman with two children. I am 65 years old. Fortunately in remission with Anal Cancer. But was offended by the email I received from you last month, and would not like to receive any more actually. It was stated quite catagorically that anal cancr was the result of anal sex, severl partners and smoking. I did post a comment to say that i have NEVER smoked, always thought it was a waste of money. Only EVER had sexual intercourse with ONE person, my husband. NEVER had anal sex……Yet still had anal cancer. I felt that your article was MOST offensive. I had all my treatment Privately and the Professor Maughan who was in Felindre Hospital at the time, didnt take any fees personally, they were ALL donated to Cancer Reasearch UK. Total amount nearly £30,000. So you can imagine how upset I was when I read your article. I would like you to take me off your mailing list thank youand will seriously be thinking about making my donations elsewhere.

Thank you for writing about this, Greg. I am a ten year anal cancer survivor and from time to time I do media interviews on behalf of Macmillan Cancer Support. I have yet to meet a journalist who had heard of anal cancer before they spoke to me. Some have told me later that they have had to fight to get material past their squeamish editors. When Farrah Fawcett died of anal cancer the British press refused to use the word anal. Many newspaper websites will not allow the use of the word in comments. It would be wonderful if the cancer charities could combine to break through this wall of silence. When I was diagnosed there were 450 cases a year in the UK. You now say there are 1200. That is a very rapid increase but completely understandable as the teenagers of the 1960s and 70s – the first post contraceptive pill generation – reach the age when slow developing HPV related cancers strike. It is crazy that this is not being discussed, especially as the treatment is so gruelling and leaves many, like myself, with significant long-term health issues, even when the cancer itself has been cured.

At last someone has noticed!! I was diagnosed with anal cancer four years ago and since that day have been determined to raise awareness of this hideous disease. Despite excellent work by the HPV and Anal Cancer Foundation the nationals are reluctant to pick up on this – why?