Rectal cancer options

My most recent meeting with cancer began in early April of 2011.  After experiencing some odd bleeding, I made an appointment with a colorectal surgeon. He advised that an immediate colonoscopy be performed to see what was going on. The following week he did the exam and removed a 4cm mass, that was subsequently sent away for analysis.  Days later the results came back unfavorable..Cancer.
It's amazing what that word does to your perspective. In an instant, your own mortality becomes something you sense out of the corner of your eye. You approach aspects of your life with greater urgency. Important things become more important, and things that are mundane gain some semblance of meaning they never had.