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Sleepless, waiting for results

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MikDar99
MikDar99

39 y/o male.  My symptoms started a little over three months ago.  Began with a constant feeling that I had something stuck in my throat, best described like a lump in my throat (didn't seem to be impacted by me eating/ drinking/ swallowing).  I waited a few weeks before seeing my family physician.  When I went for my first visit, she diagnosed it as a symptom of acid reflux and prescribed medication to reduce the amount of acid being created (I actually asked her if it might be Oesophageal cancer based on my online self diagnosis - and she seemed with almost 100% certainty that it was not).  A month went by with no improvement except the lump in my throat feeling seemed to also now include an unusual feeling in my upper chest area (Oesophageal) I wouldn't call it painful or burning but just a feeling.  I went back to my Dr. once more and she changed my acid reflux meds.  Symptoms haven't gotten any better - have the same lump feeling and "off" feeling in my upper/ mid chest.  No pain when swallowing, no weight loss, no food getting stuck, no vomiting - really no other symptom beyond those two.  My Dr. has now referred me to have an endoscopy, which is scheduled for one week today.  

I haven't been able to sleep more than a couple of hours a night with the fear/ dread that I'm going to find out I have Oesophageal cancer.  In fact, it's 2:30am as I write this.  Not sure how I'm going to get through the next week or work on little to no rest sad

0 likes, 7 replies

7 Replies

  • AlanJM
    AlanJM MikDar99

    Posted

    The digestive system is quite complicated, and feelings of a 'lump' or 'bolus' in your chest / throat area are not uncommon.   An endoscopy is the way of finding out what is going on.   It might be that your lower oesophageal sphincter is not relaxing properly, for instance, and there is some kind of reaction through the nerve system.  It is natural to suspect cancer, and it is certainly a possibility to be investigated, but most endoscopies referred in the circumstances you describe turn out to be negative for cancer.   So whilst it is natural to worry, try and anticipate that there is a good chance that it will not be cancer.   At the moment it is uncertainty that is causing your anxiety rather than anything more serious.

    Tension can make the swallowing process more difficult, and might even generate more stomach acid, so it is important to try and find some method of reducing your anxiety and achieving some relaxation.   Which will be difficult, of course, but whatever happens, you will need to keep up your nutrition intake and relax sufficiently to give your system a chance of working well.

    In one sense, statistically, you are unlikely to have cancer, because of your age, but it is true that younger people do, occasionally, get this cancer.   70% of oesophageal cancer is adenocarcinoma, which has an association with Barrett's oesophagus and persistent heartburn.  A person with newly-developed Barrett's Oesophagus at age 30 may have 11 - 25% chance of developing adenocarcinoma before the age of 80, so it is normally a slow-developing thing.   But statistics are meaningless on an individual basis when you either have it, or have not.    There are more details on the website Action Against Heartburn.

    I know many people who have had this cancer, had it treated successfully and have a good quality of life afterwards.   If the worst comes to the worst, you will have to get on with things and travel the path that many others have trodden before you.   It is not easy and everybody would prefer it not to have happened, but if cancer is diagnosed early, the prospects of successful treatment are good.

    I hope that this helps a bit.

     

    • MikDar99
      MikDar99 AlanJM

      Posted

      That does help actually.  Appreciate you taking the time to provide some words of wisdom and advice.
  • dh01
    dh01 MikDar99

    Posted

    Hi MikeDar99

    Alan's reply makes a lot of sense. Your GP is taking the logical course to identifying the cause of your swallowing difficulty - eliminating possibilities from acid reflux/gas to other non-cancerous problems. One of the least likely scenarios would be OC but even if you have that and catch it earlier enough, there are well tried procedures to enable you to have a normal life thereafter

    So what you are doing is the right thing. Keep visiting the GP/hosp until your symptoms are properly diagnosed. Endoscopy is (currently) the standard treatment to allow a consultant to view your oesophagus internally. From that he can determine whether you have a serious problem. Thousands of people around the country undergo this treatment (some on numerous occasions), the majority of DO NOT have OC.

    I wish you well

    • MikDar99
      MikDar99 dh01

      Posted

      Thanks for responding and help putting things in perspective for me.  It seems like mind likes to go into ovverdrive in the middle of the night - but reading this helps tremendously.
  • Jenzo007
    Jenzo007 MikDar99

    Posted

    Hi I have my endoscopy next week. I get food stuck midway in my oesophagus once or twice a week. Always in the same place which can also get scalded with hot drinks. Acid reflux on going and again affects the same place. I have recently encountered issues with liquids where I have to belch to try and pass the obstruction. I am 50 on saturday and im trying to put this out of my mind. I know its difficult but you can't change what the outcome maybe. All the best
    • MikDar99
      MikDar99 Jenzo007

      Posted

      Thanks!

      I had my endoscopy.  I don't think I was expecting it to be as big a production as it ended up being...wheeling me down the hall in they gurney etc...  I think I just thought it would be me and a doctor and a tube rather than 3 or 4 nurses, anaesthesiologist, and the doctor. They found a few ulcers in my stomach and said there was more acid than normal (which sort of surprised me since I'm taking Tecta which I though eliminated the acid).  They did a biopsy on the ulcers and told me to come back in 3/4 weeks for the results.  After the endoscopy my stomach area felt a little bloated/ painful.  The next couple of following the endoscopy I felt a little bit of shrp pain in a couple of specific areas of my stomach when breathing in deeply, which I assume was the areas they did the biopsy.

      In that month, the sensation in my throat has pretty much cleared up.

      I went back yesterday for the results, which took all of maybe 2 minutes.  The Dr. simply said a little more acid than is normal and to limit coffee, alocohol, and spicy foods.  There was nothing of interest that showed up in the biopsy results (which I was surprised with after they had previously mentioned I had a few ulcers).

      I've scheduled an appointment with my family Dr. for a recap of everything and then take it from there I guess.

    • Jenzo007
      Jenzo007 MikDar99

      Posted

      Really pleased your results show nothing sinister. Positive news. I live by the moto what will be will be. The wife is worried as to what my outcome will be.... we will see. All the best!
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