How they knew they had colon cancer

Colon cancer screenings: Craig and Angie's stories

Craig's colon cancer story

"One day, I'm living my life. The next day, I'm fighting for it," said Craig Grandgenett of Nevada, Iowa. Almost 10 years ago, at age 42, he was diagnosed with colorectal cancer.

“Today, it’s still so fresh on my mind, it takes everything to not think about it all day,” he said. “To say it’s life-changing hardly describes the experience.”

An active, healthy father of four sons, Grandgenett was in the trenches of parenthood with his wife, Debbie. Together, they own a bustling dental practice and their schedule didn’t allow for much wiggle room. A colorectal cancer diagnosis was not even remotely on the radar.

Colon cancer symptoms that started vague

Starting in August 2014, Grandgenett experienced a loss of appetite that resulted in a 20-pound weight loss in a matter of two months.

“I knew I didn’t feel right. As long as I didn’t eat much, I felt fine,” said Grandgenett. “The weight loss didn’t alarm me as much as not having an appetite and not being able to eat a modest meal.”

And then, just one small spot of blood on a piece of toilet paper. A day went by, another small spot. Without delay, he scheduled an appointment with his family doctor. At the time, there was a stomach virus making the rounds, and they agreed it seemed a likely culprit.

“At that first visit with my doctor, we briefly discussed a colonoscopy, but based on my age and health history, it seemed like an overreaction,” said Grandgenett.

But his appetite continued to wane, and in October 2014, Grandgenett lost 10 more pounds. He talked to his doctor, and this time, scheduled an upper GI (endoscopy) and lower GI (colonoscopy) exam.

"At that point, there were a lot of things it could have been: a stomach ulcer, reflux or inflammation," said Grandgenett. "But not this."

No delay in treatment

When the colonoscopy revealed a tumor, there was little time to absorb the information. A series of tests and scans revealed it may have spread to the lymph nodes. After the initial shock, Grandgenett remembers thinking, “Let’s go. Let’s get this done.” He adds, “There was no time to waste, as it seemed likely to spread.”

Before the end of the year, Grandgenett had already finished six weeks of chemotherapy and radiation therapy to shrink the size of the tumor. Surgery to remove the tumor took place soon after and was followed by seven more months of another grueling chemotherapy treatment.

The battle was far from over, though. A year after the original diagnosis, scans revealed a tumor on his liver. He underwent surgery to remove it. Just a month later, two additional spots were found, one on each lung.

Looking forward to more birthdays

"There were so many critical times. In a period of just 18 months, I spent 84 days in a hospital bed," said Grandgenett. Doctors gave him a five-year life expectancy of 12 percent. Two surgeries later, the tumors were successfully removed from his lungs. He had his first clean scan in February 2017.

“Throughout this time, I went from wondering if I’d live to see the end of baseball season to wondering if I’d see my oldest son, Andrew, graduate from high school,” said Grandgenett. "I lived in hopes of seeing each milestone."

In September of 2016, two years after the diagnosis, Debbie threw him a party for his 44th birthday. “It was momentous to make it to another birthday,” said Grandgenett. “Before colorectal cancer, I can’t say I looked forward to growing old. Today, I look forward to another birthday. I’m looking forward to 50, 60 and beyond. I’m just so happy to be here.”

Now, as of March 2024, Grandgenett has seen all his sons graduate high school, go off to college and even watched one get married. "I didn’t think I’d get to experience this,” said Grandgenett. “It was kind of always my goal to get them to where they could be independent.”

"Everything I get to experience is richer," he said. "I relish life more. They were the worst years of my life and the best years of my life. You can't have so much good without living through the bad," said Grandgenett.

Angie's colon cancer story

As a former news reporter for a local television station and now working in news service for Iowa State University, Angie Hunt is accustomed to telling the stories of other people. Now, she has an urgent message of her own to share with others.

It started with a routine exam Hunt scheduled when she turned 40. Hunt had several health tests and screenings that day, including a fecal immunochemical test (FIT), a screening test for colon cancer that checks for blood in the stool.

Taking the FIT Test

Thinking nothing of it, Hunt brought it home. She didn’t feel any sense of urgency to go through with the test. After all, she was an unlikely candidate for colorectal cancer. But when her doctor’s office called her with a reminder, she sent it in.

“My doctor was very proactive and recommended a FIT test at 40. At that point, I was still 10 years out from when they recommend getting a colonoscopy,” said Hunt. "I am so grateful and so thankful that she recommended taking that FIT test.”

A few days later, her doctor’s office called to say the test detected blood. To rule out a false positive, she repeated the test. It came back with the same results.

Hoping the results would indicate something else, Hunt scheduled a colonoscopy. The test confirmed she had colorectal cancer.

“I was dumbfounded,” said Hunt. “I remember being asked if I had a surgeon, and I just sat there wondering why I’d ever have the need for one,” she adds. “It was a shock, to say the least. I knew nothing about colorectal cancer, and here I was, in the thick of it.”

Surgery was in August 2016, and Hunt had a foot of her colon removed, along with 14 lymph nodes. Further tests confirmed the cancer likely had not spread. Not wanting to take any chances, Hunt chose to go through with a six-month course of chemotherapy. “I was fortunate the chemo was in a pill form,” she said, “I didn’t have to go to a clinic, and I didn’t have intense side effects.”

Testing in April 2017 confirmed Hunt was cancer-free. “I feel incredibly fortunate that it was caught so early, and I was able to go through the treatment with relatively minimal side effects,” said Hunt. “It wasn’t a walk in the park. But I’m cancer free and much more aware of what I can do to make sure it doesn’t come back.”

Now in 2024, Hunt reflects on her experience and offers this advice: “Don’t wait. Call your doctor and make the appointment. There’s a peace of mind to having that screening. I recommend talking to the doctor if there’s a family history and find out if a screening should happen earlier.”

Don't delay colon cancer screenings

Colon cancer screenings can potentially catch cancer in its early stages. But, a 2020 Blue Cross^® Blue Shield^® Health of America Report^® shows that only a small number of patients between the ages of 50 and 52 are getting screened. Talk to your personal doctor about when you should begin getting regular colon cancer screenings, based on your health history and potential risk factors.

To Hunt, it seems an incredible stroke of luck that her doctor recommended a fit test and made sure she followed through with it.

“Not all doctors give their patients these tests,” said Hunt. “Had she [Hunt’s doctor] not made the recommendation, had her nurse not called with a reminder, had I not followed through, when would I have had symptoms? If I had symptoms, would I have paid attention? Would I have waited until it was too late?"

“It’s hard for me to wrap my head around everything that has happened,” said Hunt. “I feel so lucky to have caught it early. My hope is that sharing my story will encourage others to talk to their doctor about these simple tests and to follow through.”

“I'm incredibly grateful a wonderful doctor made the suggestion for a FIT test,” said Hunt. “Take that step and get the screening to know where you stand.”

Craig has a similar goal for sharing his experience with colon cancer. "My hope is that my story resonates with other men, particularly those who might delay or prolong medical care or tests. If something is wrong, don't delay. Get it checked now. If I had waited even a few months, I would not be here today."

Need more information? Here's what you should know about colon cancer, its symptoms and preventive colonoscopy guidelines.