Floating stools, lymph nodes - terrified

I'm a 22 year old female and basically, I read an article couple of weeks ago that talked about floating stools as being symptoms of pancreatic cancer and I've noticed that my stool is light to medium brown and floats, no matter how soft or lumpy it is (I have an underactive thyroid which I know can cause constipation). It's sunk maybe 3 times in the past 2 weeks and I tend to go either once or twice a day and pass hard lumps, bulky stools or normal and soft. I was taken to hospital a week ago because of a very high heart rate and turns out that my thyroid is completely out of whack and very underactive. I was asked to go back in a day later to ambulatory care to sort my medication and things out and I told them all my symptoms, they ran full bloods checking for basically everything and felt my stomach etc. Everything came back normal except potassium which was very slightly low and they gave me tablets to take for 3 days. I have lost 4 pounds in 3 weeks because I'm so extremely anxious and my appetite  keeps coming and going and I'm terrified to eat because I don't want to go to the toilet and I feel a bit nauseous when I eat and I'm scared that I will get bloated because that's another sign (I don't think I do, I can't tell the difference between full and bloated anymore). I lost my appetite for a week but that's come back now. I'm hungry but I'm just so scared to eat. When I do eat, its been mostly oatmeal with water and high fibre foods and I've been drinking lots of water. Then, for just over week, I've been getting pain in my left leg and knee and there is a lump that my doctor said was just normal tissue a week ago when I went to see her. I've booked in to see her again this friday where she will refer me for an ultrasound and x-ray as she told me to come back if my fears haven't settled which they haven't. I also have had palpable lymph nodes in my neck since October which I've had scanned twice 3 months apart and they are all textbook and fine and 2 doctors at the hospital felt them and said they were fine too. Combined with all these symptoms, I am absolutely terrified that I have cancer that is spreading and I cannot stop crying or shaking and having panic attacks, I'm terrified. I have a private gastro doctor's appointment on Wednesday (he specialises in GI cancers etc) and I am praying he will send me for a CT scan because I do not know how much more I can take of this, this is causing me to feel a bit suicidal because at least that way I have some control over my own life. I'm a student at uni and have deadlines coming in a month and as you can imagine, I am extremely stressed out. I know no one here can diagnose me, I just want to get it off my chest because I live alone and I have no one to turn to. I'm scared that I have either lymphoma, pancreatic cancer, bowel cancer, bone cancer, soft tissue sarcoma or ovarian cancer since I have symptoms that match all of them and I cannot find any other explanation to my symptoms.

  • HeyJanika14  

    please take a deep breath in and out

    You have complete control over what ur going through. You don't have to end ur life to feel in control. ️ Write a short list of the things that r on ur mind the most. You have some control over all of those things. If ur worried about uni work u have an option of calling them and explaining what's going on for you. They will support you and probably have other options to help you too. Whether they give you extra time to complete work or even if u had to defer for a year....your health comes first. there may be some tough choices ahead but you've got this. You may not feel strong but that's exactly what you're being right now. Strength doesn't come without fear. You're in the right place and being seen very soon. Have a list of things to ask the dr at ur next appointment I find it helps when I'm anxious receiving news and keeps me focused on questions I want answers to. 
    remember these people(professionals) r there to help you. Tell them how u r really feeling and if you need a CT scan,MRI -whatever...ask for it. Don't b afraid to ask for what u need to calm ur anxiety and put ur mind at rest. 
    please let us know how it goes. I wish u all the best. Sending positive thoughts your way

    Jen x

  • Thank you so much for the kind message, it means a lot. I just feel so powerless and lost and I'm just praying my doctors will send me for tests to get to the bottom of this. It's just all a lot to go through completely alone along uni stress and a pandemic. Your kind words have made me feel a bit better though. I hope that this is all stress and nothing sinister.

  • Fingers crossed it all goes well. Just remember that any 'bad' news doesn't mean it's all over. It just means you have a new set of priorities. 
    these are hard times we're living in but we can get through it. 
     

    please keep us updated!

    take care

    jen 

  • Hi!

    I went to the specialist and he said it sounds like a classic case of ibs. He referred me for a feacal test to my gp which I have tomorrow and told me not to worry. I have another gp appointment to schedule an x-ray and ultrasound of my leg tomorrow so hopefully we'll get to the bottom of all this. He said he doesn't feel the need for a colonoscopy if the stool tests come back fine yet I hear so much contradicting info here that I should push for scans. I've been to hospital, 2 gps and a specialist and no one is even mentioning a ct scan or anything. I can't refer myself so how can I push for more tests? Or should I accept what the doctors say and follow their timeline?