About Colostomies

A colostomy is an opening (stoma) on your abdomen (belly) that connects your colon (large intestine) to the outside of your body. The colostomy allows stool and gas to leave your body when they can’t pass through your anus. Your stool is collected in a pouch worn on the outside of your body.

You might need a colostomy for a short time (temporary) or for the rest of your life (permanent). But once you have healed after surgery, you can look forward to returning to most, if not all of the activities you enjoyed in the past.

After surgery, you might still feel the urge to move your bowel and have some discharge from your anus. This discharge may be mucus, blood, and at times stool, left from before your operation. This is normal.

Why would I need a colostomy?

You might need a colostomy if your colon (large intestine) isn’t working correctly or if part of it needs to be removed. A colostomy may be needed if:

• Your large intestine is blocked or damaged by cancer or other problems
• The cancer is very close to your anus
• Part of your large intestine needs to be removed
• You have an infection caused by a hole in your large intestine

You might be more likely to need a colostomy if you have certain types of cancer. These include cancers of the colon, rectum, prostate, ovaries, uterus, and cervix. You might also need a colostomy if you have Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis. Rarely, you might need a colostomy after surgery to remove colorectal polyps.

What will my colostomy look like?

Your colostomy stoma could be anywhere on your belly,  depending on which part of your colon is affected. Some stomas are large, some small; some are on the left side of the abdomen, some are on the right, others may be in the middle.

An ostomy nurse (or Wound Ostomy Continence nurse, sometimes called a  WOC nurse) or your surgeon will figure out the best place for your stoma. An ostomy nurse is a specially trained nurse who takes care of and teaches people how to take care of their ostomies.

When you look at a stoma, you are actually looking at the lining (the mucosa) of your intestine, which looks a lot like the inside lining of your cheek. The stoma will look pink to red. It’s warm and moist and puts out small amounts of mucus.

The stoma may look quite large at first but will shrink to its final size about 6 to 8 weeks after surgery. The shape will be round to oval. Some stomas may stick out a little, while others are flat against the skin.

Unlike the anus, the stoma has no valve or shut-off muscle (sphincter). This means you won’t be able to control when stool passes from the stoma. You will need to wear a pouch over your stoma most of the time.

More about colostomies