Colon cancer starts in the colon. Eventually it can spread. The first place it usually spreads to is the lymph nodes near the colon. From there it can go to several places such as lymph nodes that are far away from the colon, or to places such as the liver or spleen.
Sometimes parents are not completely open and honest with their children because they feel they cannot handle it. Sometimes they just are unclear themselves about what the doctor said was going on. If you think you can handle this, tell your parents you think you can handle this. If it is OK with your parents, go with them to the oncologist next time. Perhaps write down a few of questions that you have and show them to your folks and ask them if it is OK to ask the oncologist. Good questions to ask might be
1. With treatment, is it likely she will be cured? If this is not the case, and if you had to take your best guess, how much time does she have left?
2. What side effects should we expect? Are there any serious side effects that we should call you about, or go to the emergency room for?
3. What is the extent of her illness, or, in other words, where did the cancer start and where has it spread to?
4. Are blood relatives at increased risk for this? Should any of her brothers, sisters, or children have a colonoscopy to look for precancerous polyps, and at what age, and how often should it be repeated?
I hope your mom gets better,
-Amnia