Why is it hard to poop after radiation?
Hi, all. I recently completed my Cyberknife treatment and a few days later, I’ve been having terrific pain while trying to poop. The doc says this is normal but it’s friggin painful and annoying. Is it due to rect swelling? What gives?
I'm not sure about Cyberknife treatment, but it sounds like the "Radiation Therapy" (what my oncologist called it) I had for prostate cancer. After 2 weeks/10 treatments, I lost control of my rectum and my stools started getting flat instead of round. This may or may not be part of your problem. I do remember some discomfort at first, but not really painful.
October 1st will be 6 years since my last treatment and I still can't stop/hold a bowel movement. The flat stools lasted over 9 months and gradually got back to round after a year; although, I still have several flat ones every now and then, there's not any indication of why.
Doctors say it Radiation Cystitis and it could possibly heal itself (praying), so far, I've learned to live with it. Meaning: staying close a readily available restroom with anything in my stomach. I've gone from <30 seconds of feeling the bowel movement to anywhere from 30 seconds to 2-3 minutes.
BTW, I'm now in my mid-60s.
Hope everything works out for you!
I realize I am late to the party! I am a pelvic floor physical therapist. It is very common to experience pain and dysfunction in any area of the body that has been exposed to radiation. If you are getting it in the pelvis, this causes local inflammation of the bowel. Which results in constipation and sometimes pain. Try to avoid getting constipated (using an OTC product like Miralax can help). And try not to strain, as it can make the pain worse. Has this problem gotten any better since you posted this?
Becca Ironside, Team Member
