Hi All,
I should start off by saying that my experience was extremely rare (I understand) and no one should feel this is an common or likely side effect of RT but perhaps worth mentioning as all knowledge helps.
I was a bit concerned about my ability for follow the bowl emptying regime as I have suffered from constipation from as far as I can remember, so I was quite keen to follow the requirements as outlined to me.
I was warned , beforehand (as we are) to expect blood and mucus in my stools. So after the first week when what seemed copious amounts of blood appeared in the bowl I was a bit complacent, however it turned into a situation more like stools in my blood. So much that I was concerned about anemia.
It turned into something a bit scary so I brought it to the attention of the staff and then followed various tests.
The upshot was that it appeared to be haemorroids which I had previously been unaware of suffering from. However from that point the external symptoms of piles appeared
The likely cause was that I had taken to the bowl emptying routine too enthusiastically. My RT hospital had a policy of randomising the daily appoinments to ensure fairness so the routine had happen anytime between 07:00 and 18:00 depending on that day's appointment.
I was taken off the dispensed enemas and changed my diet and it halted the deluge. I had one more bout of severe bleeding before the RT ended.
I was told that I would have a Sigmography once things settled down post-RT but as often in the ways of these things, it never happened. This diagnosis of haemorroids seems reasonable enough so I didn't chase it it.
My RT was almost a year ago now and although the PSA results could be better, one positive outcome it that my constipation seems a thing of the past and I am now like clockwork! There is still the occasional small amount of mucus but I take that positively, as a sign that the RT is still working.