i forgot to mention in my last post

[diemyn]

I've had bronchitis at least 5 times, that's landed my in the ER and pneumonia twice(that i recall) that was in both lungs and almost killed me and walking pneumonia once, which was in both lungs and gave me a fever of 105. Those have been, one of them, every year, for like 5 years, before that every other year, cuz those times I had strep throat so bad I had to be taken to the ER cuz I actually could not breathe. Over the last 5 years I've been having increasingly frequent and increasingly painful stabbing pain in my lungs when I breathe. It's been 2 years since I've taken a full breath without pain.

[HeinrikMD]

Hi,

If the symptoms do vary with a return to a baseline functionality, there may indeed be an element of COPD. I use the word element, because there may also be some other things or some other elements there. The blood indicates destruction of the linings of the airways or on the actual areas where air exchange occurs. It is not a common feature for COPD. This may be due to current or prior infection (there is a condition called bronchiectasis, in which repeated infections tend to erode the lung and hence there may be significant bleeding), it may also mean cancer. I hope your finances improve, so you can get an actual examination and investigation.

[diemyn]

I think I do have a return to baseline. They are just very short periods and usually happen after I've coughed up a good amount of blood and mucus.
I don't have a doctor or any health insurance, but it really seems like the best thing I can do is belive that it's COPD and not cancer, and keep eating carefully and not over exert myself, cuz when that inhaler runs out I'm screwed. Do you think if I reapplied for disability and claimed that I had COPD, they'd send me to get tested for it? With endometriosis as my only actually diagnosed chronic illness I thought I'd get to see a gyno through them , but no luck. Thanks so much for your input<3 I will stay positive!!

Love and Light,
Diemyn

[HeinrikMD]

Hi,

One of the difficulties in the fight against lung cancer is the absence of any specific alarm symptom. All of the symptoms that you mentioned may be symptoms of cancer. Your condition seems to be chronic and relapsing, perhaps a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) which would be characterized by periods of exacerbations and periods of relative improvement. Cancer tends to be progressive, without a return to baseline. What muddles things is that diseases like COPD often have similar risk factors for lung cancer, so both can be present. Discuss your concerns with your doctor, some of the tests that were done like the previous scan would raise a chance for looking if something there is suspicious for malignancy. Stay positive.