Does my dad have colon cancer?

My dad has no health insurance because he was recently fired from his job. He has always had constipation and lethargy due to a poor diet, lack of exercise, and lack of sleep. The other day he told me that he had a strange sense of fullness. We had dinner at 8 pm at night and he told me he was still full at 2 pm the next day. His exact words after dinner were "I could have eaten more" and then the next day he says "I feel really full for some reason". I thought it was strange and then on in the week he told me he had a bloody stool. He is trying to calm himself down by saying it is just hemorroids but I think it could be early stages of colon cancer and he is deluding himself. Without health insurance, what should he do?

He should apply for medicaide or whatever the State health plan is for your State. But right now he should go to a doctors office. They can do a test of his stool to check for occult blood. That will tell them if they should investigate further. The doctors visit should not cost more than $60 or so and many doc's let you pay them in insdtallments. Here's the thing...he HAS to get it checked out. It could be the beginning stages of bowel cancer and if he gets it checked out now instead of later, bowel caner in early stages is very treatable. Many times the next step will be to have a lower GI done which can be done in an outpatient setting. Tell your dad that you guys can worry about the medical bills later on but right now you want your dad to be around for a while and you want him to go to the doctor right away. Good luck my friend.

He should absolutely see a doctor. A visit to a doctor's office should cost $150-$200 out-of-pocket. That's a small price to pay -- nothing is more important. At the very least, he'll have someone qualified to give him advice about everything from further treatment to better diet to resources for people without insurance.

Go to a hospital in your area and see what programs they have available for the uninsured or payment plan. Your father's health and life are more important than money and he needs to get tested. It may not be anything more than hemorrhoids. I'm sure he would rather be safe than sorry! Good Luck!