Aa
Anyone??
I posted a question earlier but got no response, I have a quick question, has anyone out there gone a year of testing and chasing gastro drs finding no dx than only to be told you should see a gyn again? Does earlier earlier stages of OC not show up until a year after it has been checked for? feels like i'm going in circles. Went from 140lbs to 114lbs, gastro wants to say its IBS even though tests show no evidence and is suggesting I go back to a gyn dr
Best Answer
oc can certainly be missed in its early stages. thats why you do need to do the trans ultra sound and the ca 125 tests. this is why oc is called the silent killer. Its symptoms can be so,slight that one doesn't always notice. my gp kept saying i had a uti and the weight loss was because i was dieting anyhow. I look back now and think 110 lbs in less than 10 months, should have been a red flag. I had othe symptoms which my gp just dismissed as going into menopause. If I hadn't have changed drs I wouldn't be here today. My gyno/onc found the cancer with one test, the ca125 and then the ultra sound. I have stage 2 oc, done several rounds of chemo and after almost two yerars am starting to feel like my old self again. I go for blood tests and ct scans every 3-6 months and knock on some wood am okay.
I am taking all of your advise and I have a appt with my gyn/onc may 28th, I was going to just wait until my GP did the u/s in Aug. I had been going through this frustration mood for the past few months, canceling dr. appts, not going for bloodwork. I think I just got really disguisted (sp) with everything that I gave up and just figured I'd wait until things got really really bad. My GP put me on a anti depressant cuz I was doing alot of crying, I was always so active and doing something all the time. Thank you so much for replying to my post it means alot to me. You are all in my thoughts and prayers.
Penny
Penny
Good morning ladies, thank you for the replies. Here's alittle history of what I have gone through for the past year, 4/09 appt w gyn/onc did CT showed nothing told me to take OTC gas x and come back in a year. 7/09 General surgeon did adbominal surgery for adhesions 75 staples and a hospital stay about 9 days, bloating and pain started a few days after. 8/09 bowel obstruction, gastro and feeding tube, scans showed thickening of the colon hospital stay almost a month.Thats when they brought in a gastro dr. did all the test possible couldnt find anything. Gastro dr. suggested going back to gyn dr and checking again. To my surprise I was reading the general surgeons report and he stated both ovaries absent surgically removed, which I know I have one left! I have a appt May 28 with my gyn/onc. I do have OC and BC on both sides of my family, my dad's sister died of OC at the age of 47 and my mom had a sister who died also from OC. My mother's side has BC, her mother, her sister and niece. I had the top portion of my breast removed when I was 29 yrs old. My mammo showed cells that stuck together like grapes so they removed them. Can OC be missed if in the early stages and could a year make a difference to finding it?
I think that you need to INSIST that your doc does a CA125 blood test. If they are not willing to then PLEASE find a gyno that is. I am not saying that you have cancer only that we as women have to be pro-active on these issues as some doctors are not and it could cost us our lives so do not wait for your doc to decide DEMAND it.
Best Wishes
Keep us posted
Best Wishes
Keep us posted
Penny,
Why is your gyn waiting so long to do the u/s and blood work?? August is a long time to wait. I would question that.
I went through what you are going through for almost 4 years but w/o the weight loss. Unfortunately, my gastro doctor does not seem to be able to help me. I did finally have a hysterectomy because of several issues going on and a slight concern for ovarian cancer. I do not have ovarian cancer. I am still recuperating but am basically having all the issues that I had before. I don't know what to tell you EXCEPT, since you had a colonoscopy and the camera swallowing test, then it is time to rule out ovarian cancer. That is what you need to tell your doctor. Hopefully, you don't have it, but there is nothing wrong with ruling it out and I think that is what you need to do now. You need a transvaginal ultrasound, a CA125 test (which you can't really rely on but it is one tool), even a laparascopy to take a look at your remaining ovary. Any family history?
Let me know what happens!
Why is your gyn waiting so long to do the u/s and blood work?? August is a long time to wait. I would question that.
I went through what you are going through for almost 4 years but w/o the weight loss. Unfortunately, my gastro doctor does not seem to be able to help me. I did finally have a hysterectomy because of several issues going on and a slight concern for ovarian cancer. I do not have ovarian cancer. I am still recuperating but am basically having all the issues that I had before. I don't know what to tell you EXCEPT, since you had a colonoscopy and the camera swallowing test, then it is time to rule out ovarian cancer. That is what you need to tell your doctor. Hopefully, you don't have it, but there is nothing wrong with ruling it out and I think that is what you need to do now. You need a transvaginal ultrasound, a CA125 test (which you can't really rely on but it is one tool), even a laparascopy to take a look at your remaining ovary. Any family history?
Let me know what happens!
Thank you so much for the reply. It just feels like i'm going in circles here with no help only pain meds. The bloating comes and goes, i have no appetite but the worse is the pain it reminds me of when i would get a period my back and hips would hurt so bad. I had a hysto in the 80's becuz I had pap smears that showed pre cancer cells they left one ovary in. My primary is sending me for bloodwork and another u/s but not until Aug. All the gastro test for everything came back negative even the colonascopy (pulp removed begnin) and a test that I had to swollow a camera. I quess i'm back to square one again with much more pain and a huge weight loss. Thank you for your time I really appreciate it.
Penny
Penny
Hi henning,
I haven't personally had the issue with gastro Dr"s etc; but it seems common practice to investigate the bowel type symptoms first and eliminate things like IBS or diverticulitis before thinking of anything sinister related to gynaecology or cancer.
It is unfortunately common for a delay in diagnosis in ovarian cancer because of this type of protocol and because the symptoms can be so elusive and subtle.
Of course a patient can ask for a referal to a gynae Dr if they know they can ask and are worried about symptoms being potentially sinister.
Ovarian cancer is made up of 3 types. The one affecting the inner ovary is slower growing. Cancer in the outer cells of the ovary can be very aggressive and quick growing. My first symptom of bowel bloating not related to eating white bread or pasta etc did not reveal anything sinister on U/S. My Gp thought it was post viral inflamation, as did I. Antibiotics treated it within 2 days. 2 months later I had a bloated abdomen; bloods were slightly abnomal (not enough to get a surgeon involved ie, no raised white cell count) 4 days later when one of the consultants at my workplace got me to have a CT because of the bloods & severe supra pubic pain on palpation, revealed stage 3c ovarian cancer. At that time my waist line had come back to normal and I was feeling 99%, I was at work. I continued to feel physically well for about a week, then my symptoms became worse and even affected my ability to walk properly in the shopping center. So in a nut shell the situation changed drastically in a 2 month period. I thank God that I couldn't get into my local Gp who would have investigated for diverticulitis and booked me in for a colonoscopy and in the process miss diagnosed me for a couple of months at least. My symptoms worsened, I would have bounced back within a 2 week period though. I am a nurse and very in tune with my body. Ovarian cancer was the last thing on my mind. My CA125 was 660 just after my first CT at diagnosis.
Hope this helps and you get some resolution. Perhaps ask for a CA125 test as this can be a reliable indicator in some women. In Australia a number more than 35 is considered suspicious.
Sue.
I haven't personally had the issue with gastro Dr"s etc; but it seems common practice to investigate the bowel type symptoms first and eliminate things like IBS or diverticulitis before thinking of anything sinister related to gynaecology or cancer.
It is unfortunately common for a delay in diagnosis in ovarian cancer because of this type of protocol and because the symptoms can be so elusive and subtle.
Of course a patient can ask for a referal to a gynae Dr if they know they can ask and are worried about symptoms being potentially sinister.
Ovarian cancer is made up of 3 types. The one affecting the inner ovary is slower growing. Cancer in the outer cells of the ovary can be very aggressive and quick growing. My first symptom of bowel bloating not related to eating white bread or pasta etc did not reveal anything sinister on U/S. My Gp thought it was post viral inflamation, as did I. Antibiotics treated it within 2 days. 2 months later I had a bloated abdomen; bloods were slightly abnomal (not enough to get a surgeon involved ie, no raised white cell count) 4 days later when one of the consultants at my workplace got me to have a CT because of the bloods & severe supra pubic pain on palpation, revealed stage 3c ovarian cancer. At that time my waist line had come back to normal and I was feeling 99%, I was at work. I continued to feel physically well for about a week, then my symptoms became worse and even affected my ability to walk properly in the shopping center. So in a nut shell the situation changed drastically in a 2 month period. I thank God that I couldn't get into my local Gp who would have investigated for diverticulitis and booked me in for a colonoscopy and in the process miss diagnosed me for a couple of months at least. My symptoms worsened, I would have bounced back within a 2 week period though. I am a nurse and very in tune with my body. Ovarian cancer was the last thing on my mind. My CA125 was 660 just after my first CT at diagnosis.
Hope this helps and you get some resolution. Perhaps ask for a CA125 test as this can be a reliable indicator in some women. In Australia a number more than 35 is considered suspicious.
Sue.
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