Sharon's Vacation Pangs
- Sharon Osbourne, 68, beat colon cancer in 2002 and said that she’s missing vacations, just like the rest of us.
- Colon cancer is typically detected through a colonoscopy, which looks for polyps small growths on the colon that can become cancerous.
- Experts say that maintaining a positive attitude through cancer treatment can make a difference in life expectancy.
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Sharon’s Colon Cancer Battle
Sharon was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2002 when she was 50 years old. The mom and wife underwent surgery and chemotherapy to treat her colon cancer. (In 2012, Osbourne had a double mastectomy as a preventative measure against developing breast cancer.)
Related: Colon Cancer: Overview
Colon cancer is screened for through a colonoscopy. This screening is very important, as most colon cancers can be prevented if someone is being screened regularly for the disease. Due to screenings, the incidence of colon cancer in the U.S. has decreased over the past two decades. For someone who doesn’t have a family history of colon cancer, they can begin screening at age 45. But those who have a history of the disease within their family should screen earlier.
Related: Getting Cleaned Out for a Colonoscopy
During a colonoscopy, the doctor looks for polyps. Polyps are small growths in the colon that have the potential to grow into cancer. Dr. Zuri Murrell, a Colorectal Surgeon at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, said in an earlier interview, “When we’re looking at a colonoscopy for colorectal cancer screening, what we do is we’re looking for polyps, which are these small growths. When we see a polyp, we actually physically take the polyp out through the colonoscope. What does that mean? That means we basically put a wire through with a little bit of a little flange at the end and we pull the polyp out.”
Dr. Murrell says the polyp removal is a painless procedure. “Now, note there is no pain with that. Inside the colon, there are no pain fibers. So there’s no pain. What happens is then when we take the polyp out, we send that to a lab. In about five to 10 business days, we get the results back. So when it’s in the lab, a pathologist basically cuts up the little polyp and looks under a microscope. And underneath the microscope, they can decide whether or not it is early cancer or whether it is just a precancerous polyp. 95% of polyps are precancerous polyps. And what does that mean? That means that it’s not a cancer yet. But it would have been a cancer ultimately if you just let it grow and grow and grow.”
Looking for Polyps During Colonoscopy
Keeping a Positive Attitude
Sharon’s strong support system, like her husband Ozzy, likely helped her to keep her spirits up while battling colon cancer. Ozzy even called up Robin Williams and asked him to come over to the house and make Sharon laugh. And laughter can go a long way to lift our spirits, just like vacations.
Dr. Zuri Murrell said in a previous interview that keep spirits high and having a positive attitude while battling cancer can make a difference. “My patients who thrive, even with stage 4 cancer, from the time that they, about a month after they’re diagnosed, I kind of am pretty good at seeing who is going to be OK,” said Dr. Murrell.
Related: A Major Step in the Cancer Journey: Learning to Deal With Vulnerability
He told us that having a positive attitude won’t impact the cancer’s progression, but it can impact how cancer affects the person being treating for it. “Now doesn’t that mean I’m good at saying that the cancer won’t grow,” said Dr. Murrell. “But I’m pretty good at telling what kind of patient are going to still have this attitude and probably going to live the longest, even with bad, bad disease. And those are patients who, they have gratitude in life.”
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