Hi, I hope you're okay. Receiving a test result that's not in the normal range can be worrying.
The normal range for a fit test is 0-10ug so yours is slightly higher meaning that there is some blood found in your poo. Did your GP talk to you about this?
Blood in poo can be caused by many things such as haemorrhoids, anal fissures, crohn's disease etc so doesn't always mean cancer but it's good that you got your symptoms checked and did the FIT test.
My test came back at >400ug and I had a sigmoidoscopy and it turned out I have internal haemorrhoids. I hope you also find out you don't have something sinister.
It sounds like you have a lot going on at the moment.
A FIT test is a test for blood in the stool. It is not a test for cancer. It does indicate however that further tests need to be done to rule out a cancer. Having a result of 12 can be worrying but it does not mean that you have cancer and is only very slightly raised. You can read more about this test here.
As the other poster has said there can be lots of reasons to have a positive FIT, such as inflammation, hemorrhoids, or polyps (non cancerous growths). Do talk to your GP about what happens next.
Try not to worry too much and hopefully you will know more soon.
Please get back to us if you need any more information or support. You may find it helpful to talk things through with one of the nurses on our helpline. The number to call is Freephone 0808 800 4040 and the lines are open from 9am till 5pm Monday to Friday.
I really don't think you have a one in four chance of having cancer. I've always read that only one in ten positive cases turn out to be cancer and those cases will include older people (who are far more likely to have bowel cancer), people with other severe symptoms and people with far higher results. (Ah, I've seen a website that says one in four, but that is very much the highest I've seen. Others say stuff like 10% or even 4% and either way, they are including all results over 10 and people of all ages.)
While there is no result that indicates cancer (it just tests for blood in the stool and any amount could be caused by many things), I am pretty sure that a 70 year old with a result of 700 is more likely to have cancer than a 40 year old with a result of 12.
After all, a result below 10 means that cancer is extremely unlikely, so I would say it's still pretty unlikely with a result of 12.
If it's any consolation, when I was 40, I had rectal bleeding, weight loss, occasional loose stools and trapped wind (I didn't get a FIT test because this was after the Irish health system got hacked and things were sort of in chaos) and the consultant said that at my age, I'd be "the unluckiest person in the world" if it turned out to be cancer.
There was nothing to cure. It was just hemorrhoids, which was what we all expected, probably combined with the effects of thyroid medication and probably the stress of the whole thing.
Hi, I'm waiting for colonoscopy next week after getting 12 FIT test. Unfortunately my Dr surgery didn't look at results for a week until I chased and I was told by nurse to prepare myself for what she was about to tell me - suspected cancer. I was given no information just sent off with this information. I'm in bit of a pickle. The reason I've joined the group is after seeing your comment about Thyroid medication. I have Hashimotos, underactive Thyroid and had read somewhere that there can be a link....we don't have Dr at our surgery only agency staff so I have no way of investigating this so would welcome any help or advise you may have. I do hope I am OK asking, please do delete my post if this is not appropriate.
I am sorry to hear you are awaiting a colonoscopy after a positive FIT test and appreciate what a worrying time this can be. You are very welcome to post here any questions you may have.
Whilst blood in the stools can be caused by cancer there are other possible causes too. Thankfully not everyone who is referred on a suspected cancer pathway will have cancer but this is the quickest way of getting tests done, just to be sure.
There is evidence to suggest that having thyroid conditions can increase the risk of some people developing thyroid cancer as seenhere, However I can't see a link for bowel cancer risk as listed here.
The important thing for now to concentrate on is to get the colonoscopy carried out to find out what may be causing this blood and go from there.
I hope this helps and I do wish you all the best with these tests.
Please get back to us if you need any more information or support. You may find it helpful to talk things through with one of the nurses on our helpline. The number to call is Freephone 0808 800 4040 and the lines are open from 9am till 5pm Monday to Friday.
