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Avatar universal

Loose stools (LOTS)

I am a 39 yo female.  I have an average 8 to 10 loose stools a day.  They are usually stringy and mucusy......For a month or more there is blood in the stool, it is the brighter red blood.  I do not have hemorrhoids. Every time I eat anything, I have to go to the bathroom within minutes. sometimes have to leave the table and go during dinner.  I have not lost weight and I some what over weight.  There are times I feel like I have the flu, my body aches so bad.....My doctor mention 3 things: cancer, ulcerative colitis, crohns.  I have to have a colonoscopy.  With my symptoms what is the likely outcome?  Any ideas? I do not think it is cancer, there is no history of cancer, but I know nothing about crohns or UC.

Thanks so much
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Avatar universal
Sounds like what I've suffered from for 40 years - bright red blood, loose and mucusy/stringy stools . . . plus the urgency and frequency to eliminate.  I was diagnosed first with UC, then told it was actually ulcerative proctitis - which affects only the lower colon and is indicated by the bright red blood - as opposed to darker blood that's "older" from having been passed from further up.  My Dr suggested something I ate was causing an imbalance in the bacterial environment of the intestine, resulting in the ulcers.  Discovering what the "trigger" was for me (preservatives used in packaged meat and pork) and avoiding those foods, and also adding Metamucil to my diet to control flare-ups helped for 30 years.  I've come here now because I've had a recent major flare-up and the Metamucil is not getting it under control like it has in the past.

The colonoscopy is vital to giving you peace of mind about cancer - or discovering it, if that's the problem - but I suspect you have either UC or UP.  If so, this forum seems to be an excellent source for "natural remedies" that help balance the intestinal bacteria so the colon can heal - so be as informed as you can be about those options so you can talk with your Dr about them.  I know that Drs where I live (in Canada) seem quick to use surgery and I think that's a shame because I really believe that doesn't always have to be the answer.  After 40 years of living with UP, I think my experience suggests that there are at least other options to try first.  Good luck and keep us posted.
Helpful - 3
180749 tn?1443595232
Drink pommegranate juice to heal the colon.
If you eat fresh pommegranate, then chew the fruit  and spit out the seed.
Eat one inch of the yellow skin/flesh from the pommegranate to control the loose stools.
Helpful - 2
Avatar universal
colonoscopy is the first step. The prep part is the toughest, as the GI (gastrointestinal) system must be cleaned out for the person doing the colonoscopy to see what is going on. Prep consists generally of drinking around a gallon of liquid that is intended to pass through your system in the 1/2 day or so before the colonoscopy.

Bright red fecal matter means the source of the blood is nearby (versus further up/closer to the stomach). The colonoscopy is the sole way to really tell what & where the problem is. Part of the point of the colonoscopy is to see if any "polyps" are present; these are fairly likely to turn cancerous, but it generally takes a number of years for that to happen; in the meantime, if polyps are caught early, they can be removed before turning cancerous.

A major difference between UC and Crohns is the position; ulcerative colitis is in the large intestine only; Crohns is in both large and small intestines. UC technically can be eliminated by cutting out the large intestine but lots of side effects to this surgery and it would take quite a while to heal.

My guess is that cancer is much less likely; fecal matter passes from small intestine through ascending colon, then across (transverse) colon, then descending colon; if a tumor formed in the ascending colon where fecal matter is mostly liquid it would take longer to identify the problem versus a larger blockage that would impact bowel movements (in the descending colon). I would guess that inflammation of the bowel is more likely. (UC/Crohns)

Best of luck!
Helpful - 2
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