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Ovarian Cancer? personal experiences please.
Hi all, i would like some opinions and thoughts on this please...
i am 23 years old, i have been getting my period for 10 years. it has always been irregular, but every period was the same. they would last 10 days and be very, very painful. I have had many tests over the years. bloods, ultrasounds, paps, lappy and whatever else there is. nobody has ever found anything wrong. ive tried birth control pills, 7 brands. they didnt change a thing.
i havent had any tests for about two years now. apart from the basic bloods, ultrasound once to check for a cyst and my pap. anyway this year my period has changed majorly. my average cycle has always been 3 months. but this year, i have had my period for literally half of the year (i added it up, 1 day under being a year exact) i am having periods that last up to 50 days (this one is my longest and its still going) and the shortest this year is 22 days, next to that is 30 and up. the most ive had between periods is 3 weeks i think. and even when i dont have the period kinds of bleed, most days i will be spotting (also never had spotting before).
the periods go in waves of light and heavy, heavy days i can go through a pack of overnight pads, on average im using about 4 pads a day.
i saw a doctor earlier this year and she just gave me the pill to stop the bleeding. which only worked for a week i might add. and i saw another doctor last week and asked about ovarian cancer, he laughed at me. he said i cannot get ovarian cancer at my age. i know this is false. but hes made me feel really stupid. he just gave me a prescription for a pill i have already tried and said bye... i am seeing yet another doctor in just over a week. this is the one i normally see but hard to get into. hopefully she takes me seriously.
i also have random bloating, my meal size has shrunk to 1/4 then normal and im only eating one meal a day now. im just not hungry and often feel sick if i eat. this is only a new thing that has been going on for the past 4 weeks. in less than 2 months i have lost 20kg. something is going on!
i am 23 years old, i have been getting my period for 10 years. it has always been irregular, but every period was the same. they would last 10 days and be very, very painful. I have had many tests over the years. bloods, ultrasounds, paps, lappy and whatever else there is. nobody has ever found anything wrong. ive tried birth control pills, 7 brands. they didnt change a thing.
i havent had any tests for about two years now. apart from the basic bloods, ultrasound once to check for a cyst and my pap. anyway this year my period has changed majorly. my average cycle has always been 3 months. but this year, i have had my period for literally half of the year (i added it up, 1 day under being a year exact) i am having periods that last up to 50 days (this one is my longest and its still going) and the shortest this year is 22 days, next to that is 30 and up. the most ive had between periods is 3 weeks i think. and even when i dont have the period kinds of bleed, most days i will be spotting (also never had spotting before).
the periods go in waves of light and heavy, heavy days i can go through a pack of overnight pads, on average im using about 4 pads a day.
i saw a doctor earlier this year and she just gave me the pill to stop the bleeding. which only worked for a week i might add. and i saw another doctor last week and asked about ovarian cancer, he laughed at me. he said i cannot get ovarian cancer at my age. i know this is false. but hes made me feel really stupid. he just gave me a prescription for a pill i have already tried and said bye... i am seeing yet another doctor in just over a week. this is the one i normally see but hard to get into. hopefully she takes me seriously.
i also have random bloating, my meal size has shrunk to 1/4 then normal and im only eating one meal a day now. im just not hungry and often feel sick if i eat. this is only a new thing that has been going on for the past 4 weeks. in less than 2 months i have lost 20kg. something is going on!
I am sorry that doctor laughed at you when you asked about ovarian cancer. That was cruel! With all this bleeding, have you been checked for a bleeding / clotting disorder? Von Willebrand is the most common one. Easy bruising and nosebleeds would be symptoms besides the heavy and prolonged periods. I hope you get answers soon and can get this under control!
Doctors are so specialized and the insurance companies force them to have short appointments. I call it conveyor belt medicine. You have to have just the right doctor and the right symptoms. For my ovarian cancer I saw two primary care, a gyn all the time, a heart doctor, a surgeon, and ER doctor, and a gastro. Finally it was the primary care who found it. The insurance would not pay for BRCA until I had cancer. Men have to have prostate cancer before 60 to have the BRCA mutation. I had a grandmother on one side with Ovarian Cancer who died at 50, an aunt on the other side who died of ovarian and breast at 52, my dad and my brother got serious prostate in their 50's. We have a small family. I also have multiple sclerosis which unfortunately disqualifies me for the new immunotherapies which are promising. Things have changed so much since I was diagnosed in 2012. Now it is considered a chronic cancer. Kinda like diabetes you can live with it. I live a normal life. I swim an hour, ride horses, train dogs. I spent three weeks in Europe and did not take it easy.
Fear, Worry, and depression are the hardest part. Fear of the unknown. If you do not know what you are dealing with it is scary. Your mind goes to scary scenarios. Worry, trying to figure out every scenario and how to react. Usually what you worry about does not happen something else does. I have heard that worry is living through something unpleasant twice. Then depression when you have bad news. It takes me a couple of days to bounce back. Keeping busy helps with all three. I also write about them. I keep a journal.
Fear, Worry, and depression are the hardest part. Fear of the unknown. If you do not know what you are dealing with it is scary. Your mind goes to scary scenarios. Worry, trying to figure out every scenario and how to react. Usually what you worry about does not happen something else does. I have heard that worry is living through something unpleasant twice. Then depression when you have bad news. It takes me a couple of days to bounce back. Keeping busy helps with all three. I also write about them. I keep a journal.
Thank you for your reply, you have given me the details that i wanted to hear. i will be pushing to get tested if they dont offer themselves. and after that, if its not ovarian cancer i will have to fork out the money for another gyno. ive only seen one before and his professional diagnosis was "bad luck" no joke thats what he said. he told me to get used to it or pay a fortune to have my ovaries out. pathetic! i always get stuck with the dud doctors so i get put off easy. that was a few years ago now though so hopefully i have better luck this time around. my mum had some kind of cancer, im not sure if it as ovarian or cervical though. and my father died of prostate cancer. i never knew that prostate cancer was in the gene mix of risks for cancers for me, so that was good information! i am not a hypochondriac, i used to be a bit lol! i google everything and start to wonder but i never worry and i never go to the doctors. this one i am though as i feel like something really is wrong.
Yes Ovarian cancer at your age is rare unless you have the BRCA mutation, or lots of people in your family with Ovarian, breast, and prostate cancer before 60.To cover all bases I would go see a gyn/oncologists. They not only see cancer but also complicated cases. I might try to get the BRCA test and or a CA 125. Oh and may be a CT scan In all cases insurance companies and doctors may think you are a hypochondriac. I do not think you are.The BRCA test is very expensive if insurance does not cover it. I did not get it and I wish I had. I also am not real worried it is cancer. Another problem is if it is cancer it is probably to early to find it.
If you can not get anything I suggest get a good gynecologist and have an ultrasound every year. I normally tell people not to worry. I may be being cautious in your case. I had periods that never went away when I was 42. I had just been diagnosed with MS so they thought it was MS. My doctor did ultrasounds every 4 months. I always had cysts.
She thought they were Poly cystic ovarian syndrome and did not tell me about the cysts. I had an ablation to stop the bleeding and still bled all the time. The period stopped forever and then I started throwing up all the time. I am not one for doctors but kept going. They took my gall bladder out and that did not help. They did a CT and found nothing so they did no more CTs over two more years.Then I started having diaphragm spasms which were really bad. I had to lie really still until the pills made me sleep. They got to be weekly.
I was losing lots of weight but looked pregnant. I could not even drink much liquid. This went on for two years. I even went to the the ER thinking I was dying from the throwing up. They would not do any tests or even admit me even though the ER doctor was worried.
They sent me to a Gastro he said he did not have to do tests I had IBS. I went back to my family doctor and said something really bad is going on. It had been 6 years. They did tests and I had cancer in 14 places.
I hope and think it will not be cancer. There are things they never diagnose. The human body is complicated. I just thought doctors are real smart they will find something like cancer I do not have to push at them.
In one day I went from a patient they rolled their eyes at and thought was a hypochondriac to a patient they get me in with in hours when I call. I worked veterinary so I can diagnose a lot myself.
In my case I have the BRCA gene so being diagnosed early may not have helped.
I know how scary all these medical things can be. I have learned to push for answers but not worry. Worrying does not make it better. I say to myself there is nothing painful or bad happening this minute.
I fell in Europe and broke my nose. We were a long ways to the hotel. I checked everything and my knees were just bruised. It was Sunday and no cabs. No one spoke English anyway. I realized my knees would be better if I walked on them so they would not lock up. We walked to the hotel. They got me an interpreter and cab. I could have worried about the cost of the medical we had to pay cash in a foreign country. I know that setting a nose can be very painful.
I chose to think of neither. I was just in a cab ride. We saw a dog parade blocking the cab but I really like dogs. Long story short an xray is 12 dollars, ER visit 46. My husband had put my nose back to no setting. There was no real waiting. I went out sight seeing when we got back to the hotel. I am not a pollyanna by any means but I know how not to make it worse.
Write to me all you want.
Alex
If you can not get anything I suggest get a good gynecologist and have an ultrasound every year. I normally tell people not to worry. I may be being cautious in your case. I had periods that never went away when I was 42. I had just been diagnosed with MS so they thought it was MS. My doctor did ultrasounds every 4 months. I always had cysts.
She thought they were Poly cystic ovarian syndrome and did not tell me about the cysts. I had an ablation to stop the bleeding and still bled all the time. The period stopped forever and then I started throwing up all the time. I am not one for doctors but kept going. They took my gall bladder out and that did not help. They did a CT and found nothing so they did no more CTs over two more years.Then I started having diaphragm spasms which were really bad. I had to lie really still until the pills made me sleep. They got to be weekly.
I was losing lots of weight but looked pregnant. I could not even drink much liquid. This went on for two years. I even went to the the ER thinking I was dying from the throwing up. They would not do any tests or even admit me even though the ER doctor was worried.
They sent me to a Gastro he said he did not have to do tests I had IBS. I went back to my family doctor and said something really bad is going on. It had been 6 years. They did tests and I had cancer in 14 places.
I hope and think it will not be cancer. There are things they never diagnose. The human body is complicated. I just thought doctors are real smart they will find something like cancer I do not have to push at them.
In one day I went from a patient they rolled their eyes at and thought was a hypochondriac to a patient they get me in with in hours when I call. I worked veterinary so I can diagnose a lot myself.
In my case I have the BRCA gene so being diagnosed early may not have helped.
I know how scary all these medical things can be. I have learned to push for answers but not worry. Worrying does not make it better. I say to myself there is nothing painful or bad happening this minute.
I fell in Europe and broke my nose. We were a long ways to the hotel. I checked everything and my knees were just bruised. It was Sunday and no cabs. No one spoke English anyway. I realized my knees would be better if I walked on them so they would not lock up. We walked to the hotel. They got me an interpreter and cab. I could have worried about the cost of the medical we had to pay cash in a foreign country. I know that setting a nose can be very painful.
I chose to think of neither. I was just in a cab ride. We saw a dog parade blocking the cab but I really like dogs. Long story short an xray is 12 dollars, ER visit 46. My husband had put my nose back to no setting. There was no real waiting. I went out sight seeing when we got back to the hotel. I am not a pollyanna by any means but I know how not to make it worse.
Write to me all you want.
Alex
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