Sometimes, the colostomy is only needed until the colon has healed, and then it can be reversed. However, the doctor may have to take out the entire rectum and make the colostomy permanent. A patient, who has had a colostomy, will need to wear a special bag to collect body wastes. This special bag, which sticks to the skin around the stoma with a special glue, can be thrown away after it is used. This bag does not show under clothing, and most people take care of these bags themselves.
Chemotherapy is the use of drugs to kill cancer cells.
Chemotherapy may be taken by pill, or it may be put into the body by inserting a needle into a vein. A patient may be given chemotherapy through a tube that will be left in the vein while a small pump provides constant treatment over a period of weeks. Chemotherapy is called a systemic treatment because the drug enters the bloodstream, travels through the body, and can kill cancer cells outside the rectum. If cancer has spread to the liver, a patient may be given chemotherapy directly into the artery going to the liver. If the doctor removes all the cancer that can be seen at the time of the operation, a patient may be given chemotherapy after surgery to kill any cancer cells that are left.