Re: Diarrhea Every Day - worried

Posted By Janice on October 06, 1998 at 19:31:31:

In Reply to: Diarrhea Every Day - worried posted by Rich on October 06, 1998 at 16:05:11:






I'm a 36 year old male in good health.
About a month ago I suddenly had an attack of diarrhea in the evening.
It was very watery with some ochre-colored bits in it and it burned my anus.  
It almost ended up in my pants as it came with no cramping - I thought it
was gas.  Since then, every BM has been either diarrhea or very loose,
malformed ( ragged, small ), yellowish stools.  There is no pain, no cramping,
my appetite is unchanged, no weight loss, no visible blood.  Attacks
never happen at night; instead they tend to happen within 2 hours
of eating a meal especially in the morning.
What I eat has no effect.
I went to my GP who put me on Flagyl and Hyoscyamine.  He says my
"belly is very noisy" and he's right: when I don't take the Hyoscyamine
I can feel my insides churning.  The Flagyl has not helped at all after 5 days
but Hyoscyamine reduces frequency of attacks.
GP now wants me to stop the Flagyl and see a Gastroenterologist and I'm scared I have
something like Colon Cancer.  I don't smoke or drink and there's
no history of Colon Cancer in the family. I'd like as many
opinions as I can get...
Rich: I'm not sure what your true problem is, but it sounds like you could have Irritable
Bowel problems. IBS is usually caused by or related to stress. Are you or have you been under stress
lately? It's probably best to go through what tests your doctor prescribes and hopefully one of the
doctors here will answer your question and put your mind at ease some. I really don't think that it's
cancer, but only a doctor can be the judge and put your mind at ease 100%. There are some great sites on
the net about IBS. But, do continue to see your doctor. It may be very easily cleared up with something
simple. There's no need to suffer. Let the doctors get to the bottom of it! Now, laugh and relax.