Hi,

My name’s Rich. I’ve done a lot of work as an Endoscopy Nurse, so I’ve looked after a lot of people who are just as anxious about their symptoms as you are.

Generally, people who do have bowel cancer tend to suffer with diarrhoea as opposed to having larger, firmer stools.

Generally speaking, the majority of people with symptoms that can suggest bowel cancer are actually caused by something else instead.

I’m sorry that your problems are causing you so much anxiety. I wonder whether you May be suffering from health anxiety, which you can find more information about here.

Best Wishes 

Thanks for the reply. That’s literally the only reason why it might not be bowel cancer and I don’t seem to have tenesmus anymore. I do believe my stress isn’t helping my body nor my lack of sleep. I am off to see the GP later so hopefully she’ll help :( 

I hope your appointment goes well. 

You’re extremely young to have such anxiety about your health. Try to avoid using google and self-diagnosis, it’s so easy to scare yourself when you can type pretty much any symptom in and find cancer.

I get what you mean by feeling consumed by things including cancer. Ive been on the 2 week wait pathway twice one for not being able to swallow anything and one for some of my blood results being raised however haematology has ruled out blood cancers and lymphoma however for some reason i am still worried that theyve missed something as im still feeling rubbish. Having anxiety is hell if im honest and im currenlty anxious about the video capaule that i swallowed around two weeks ago still being in there even though im a medical professional myself though this does not help. 

Ive had symptoms similar to your self and have had tests due to a family history of bowel cancer and they have come back clear for cancer which is great but they are now going down the route of chrons or severe ibs so maybe ask your doctors about these? They can send off a fecal sample to look to inflammation ect or refer to gastroentorology to see if they can find either of these as apposed to cancer. 

Hope you gey some answers :) 

Hi, I speak from experience as I have had bowel cancer twice in the last 5 years. Firstly the only way you will stop worrying is by having an all clear endoscopy. Anxiety caused by the stress of thinking something bad is going on is just the worst feeling. Both times I had to keep pestering the doctors as I believe you know your own body. Please insist they do tests. You are only young so the chance of it actually being cancer is low but it does happen and it is easier to treat if found early.The first time different doctors at my practice were treating me for IBS, for 18 MONTHS! Both times I had different symptoms. Both times I sent off stool samples that came back normal so I do not trust them either. I'm sure you will be fine but you need tests to rule it out and then you can forget about it and live your life stress free. Good luck.

I’ve seen the GP. She was somewhat helpful. I told her about my anxiety and didn’t say much other than aww. She then said she has never seen a patient in her years of being a GP with bowel cancer at 23 but it doesn’t mean it’s impossible :( she says stress can aggravate your bowels a lot which is true. She said she’ll do another FIT test and she’ll refer me to a specialist. She said I’m not displaying typical symptoms of bowel cancer (eg wordening overtime) which is good. Oh boy. I started to cry in the car on my way back because there is just so much uncertainty right now. 

Like your GP says, it’s not impossible but it is very very unlikely to be cancer.

As Ineedabreak explained above, most tests are not 100% accurate. You can get false positives and false negatives. Finding blood on an FOB or FIT test doesn’t necessarily mean you have cancer. It could be caused by inflammation or piles or even food that you’ve eaten.

I understand that you’re really anxious about these issues you’ve been having and I’m really sorry that the situation you are in is clearly quite upsetting for you.

I’m sorry that you didn’t feel well supported with regards to your anxiety during your consultation. Just like some of the general public, I think some healthcare professionals find it difficult to address emotional problems. But there’s lots of support from people suffering with the same problems here and professional support available too.

At the risk of sounding insensitive to your feelings, which is absolutely not my intention; I think you would benefit from getting yourself out of the house - go out with friends, do something you really enjoy, and whatever the outcome of your tests, don’t let your physical health control your life.

Hi

Just looking down my threads and wondered how you were going.

Hello all. Just wanted to post this as I forgot to get back on here on this forum. I used to find it so frustrating people didn't update! I eventually went for a colonoscopy and nothing was found, only piles and nothing was forum on a CT Scan. Not sure why I had those stomach cramps but they haven't returned so the consultant just said it must be IBS. My symptoms were stomach pains, blood in stool, mucus and change of bowel habit. 

For those worrying - please try and stay strong. Do the right thing and see your GP. I was scared beyond belief but I was ok despite what forums said. Good luck to everyone and I wish you all the best.