Hello Jayne and thanks for your post,

I am sorry to hear about your mum. It is difficult to give an opinion about your mum without being involved in her care. I would ask your mum's permission to speak to her doctors.

Based on their knowledge of her cancer they will be able to give you more of an idea about how her cancer may progress.

Treatment such as surgery can come with side effects particularly in the elderly and your mum may have a better quality of life without having any further interventions.

It is difficult to say what will happen to her bowels as the cancer progresses as this can be different for every person. It may be that your mum has a very slow growing cancer and it may take a while for any changes to happen.

Unfortunately it may be a case of treating any symptoms as they occur as sometimes it can be unpredictable as to what may happen next.

I am not sure what help your mum will get at home. She may have access to a palliative care nurse who can help with any symptoms as they occur. It would be good for you to have a contact for a district nurse /palliative nurse so you know who to get in touch with if your mum needs more help.

Your mum would need to speak to her GP to see what help she may be able to get at home.

We do have some information on our website about support at home which you might find helpful to look at.

I do hope that this helps. Do give us a ring if you want to talk things through. The helpline nurses are here Monday to Friday 9 am to 5 pm and the number to ring is Freephone 0808 800 4040.

All the best,

Catherine