Could it be pancreas cancer
Posted , 5 users are following.
hi i posted yesterday but im starting to worry. i was okay yesterday but after ive been looking on the internet im now so worried it could be something worse than chronic pancreatitis. i suffer from health anxiety so after i found out i could have EPI its scaered the hell out of me. it baffles me as i dont have the typical symptoms of pancreatitis. 2yrs ago i did a test for EPI but it was overlooked and now ive done it again and its showing moderate-secere EPI. i don't have any pain associated with it but i do sometimes get a dull ache which lasts a couple of hrs which is mild. my symptoms are bloating, gurgling and gas, diarrhea once a day sometimes not at all and a dull ache. i also have ibs. i read that pancreatitis cancer dont usually cause pain in the early stages and 2yrs ago my epi was 170 and now its 110. ive also had severe inflammation in my colon 2 years ago which resulted in bloody diarrhea. i just need some reassurance. i have my hospital app in 3mnths and is ot ok to drink alcohol. if its only 2 glasses of wine. i need to take my mind off it as im constantly googling it.
0 likes, 23 replies
eagle33050
Posted
and would i loose weight quickly. ive lost half a stone but not sure the period of time i lost it. i saw a friend who i hadn't seen in 4 weeks and she commented on my weight loss. the most problem symptom i have is the gurgling noises i get. to me this don't sound like chronic pancreatitis and if its not could it be worse?
Shortie79 eagle33050
Posted
Keep in mind, the pancreas is the hardest organ to diagnose due to its location. It took my team of doctors over a year just to find out I was born with two pancreatic ducts then an additional six months to get diagnosed with CP. My CP was caused by the way I was born. Even though I have a diagnosis nothing changed, none of my symptoms. In fact I was supposed to have my pancreas removed today but they called last night to reschedule it another two weeks because the islet transplant team was double booked. Worst case you have your pancreas removed and live on digestive enzymes the rest of your life, best case … there's nothing wrong at all or your just not producing enough enzymes. CP can be managed, the only reason I have to have my pancreas removed is because my ducts are so narrow it's causing the bile to stay in my ducts. Try and stay positive, good luck with your appointment.
eagle33050 Shortie79
Posted
sorry to hear that. everything seems so hard to diagnose i was told the same about Crohn's and then by time its diagnosed the damage is done. from wat ive read epi is due to the pancreas being damaged and its caused by something else such as pancreatitis. its quite bad that they have overbooked therefore rescheduling your surgery date
eagle33050
Posted
tbh i wouldn't accept that. its their mistake why should u have to wait 2 more weeks. there's more than 1 surgeon
Shortie79 eagle33050
Posted
There's only one islet transplant team, it wasn't my surgeon who wasn't available it was the islet transplant team that canceled. To remove a pancreas it takes eight hours but when your islets are transplanted to the liver it takes an additional four hours, it's a completely different department of the hospital. I am upset but it's out of my control. My surgeon is the chief of surgery, therefore I am hoping in two weeks all the ducks are in a row. Once they remove my pancreas it's taken off site to another center to get all the islets out and then the islets are brought back to surgery to complete it. It takes a total of 12 hours, so I should be grateful they caught it before I drove two hours to get to the hospital. There's no local hospital that can treat me in my area.
eagle33050 Shortie79
Posted
i see. still its very disappointing but 2 more weeks isn't too bad. hope it all goes well x
yvonne86771 Shortie79
Posted
I do hope that you get your surgery sorted soon .
I haven't experienced anything near as painful as some other people I will keep my fingers crossed Hopefully I will know more after my app 21st
I'm in the UK so maybe do things a little different x
eagle33050 yvonne86771
Posted
i am also in the UK 😃
corinne82278 Shortie79
Posted
Hope you get your surgery soon. Genetics stinks sometimes. Extreme surgery but looks like you have no choice at this point.
At least this surgery exists nowadays and can improve and save your life. All my best wishes to you and stay strong for your surgery and keep us posted.
Shortie79 corinne82278
Posted
Thank you. I was really upset when I initially found out it was rescheduled but last night I received a call that my father passed away … everything happens for a reason. There's no way I could've handled that news after major surgery. He passed on the day I was supposed to have my surgery … I'm still in shock! I wasn't raised with him but the day I got my Pancreas Divisum diagnosis my daddy passed away (he raised me). Some things you will never forget. Both passed from different cancers. On another note, we're all born with two pancreatic ducts but only 5-10% of the population don't fuse together, mine didn't fuse. It's rare but it happens. I try to accept everything thrown in my path and share my journey to help others. My daddy and I used to be able to relate to one another with pain (his cancer and my pancreas). We would talk for hours about it and bonded so much over something so horrible but it taught me there's always a light. He taught me to see past the pain and cherish the now even when you don't think there's a light at the end of the tunnel. Now I tend to always look for a light in any darkness. Thank you all for the best wishes, I'll keep you posted after surgery. Hope you all have a wonderful day and weekend.
eagle33050 Shortie79
Posted
sorry to hear that. must be quite rough for you at the moment. and yes a good thing it was rescheduled. the way i look at it is yes it can be a serious condition but something you live with and manage. take each day as it comes. hope your ok. if you ever need to talk
Shortie79 eagle33050
Posted
In most cases you get acute pancreatitis before chronic and cancer is becoming more rare because they can screen for it. From your description of symptoms it doesn't sound like pancreatitis at all. When you have pancreatitis the pain is unbearable, it hurts to eat and the pain radiates to the left side of the back. Then there's also referred pain which can go all the way up or down your shoulder. That pain can even cause frozen shoulder. There's acid reflux, different color stools (usually pale or clay color) greasy stools because your body isn't absorbing fats. Then there's itching, hair loss, migraines, constant nausea, waking up in the middle of the night vomiting undigested food (the pancreas stops producing the enzymes to break down foods) then there's the vomiting after you attempt eating and that's if you're done being scared of the pain associated with eating. After awhile you learn to live with a new normal of pain level but most of the time you're on pain medication. Those are a few symptoms that come to mind. If something was wrong with your pancreas other than it not producing enough enzymes you would have more symptoms. Stay away from Dr. Google, it's not an expert.
corinne82278 eagle33050
Posted
hi , you need to see a good GI DR to see whats going on. IBS can be very inflammatory too. Eat only food from the LOW FODMAP list and mainly DO NOT DRINK ANY alcohol at all! It is terrible fr your pancreas and liver. Hope this can help..
yvonne86771 corinne82278
Posted
I haven't touched alcohol for 15 years ! I haven't smoked for 10 year
diagnosed in March I have calcification and a blockage in my duct ,? Im not sure what hapoens now
Shortie79 yvonne86771
Posted
They can perform an ERCP to remove the blockage from the duct and even calcifications. I have had 10 ERCPs because mine are two narrow (I have two ducts instead of one). They can put in a stent but those are temporary. ERCPs are a great way to treat any blockage BUT they can cause an attack, its not always the case but it happens. I had an attack with maybe half of them and they usually hospitalize you after the procedure to watch you just in case you do get an attack. The only treatment I do not recommend is the celiac plexus block which all it is, is a nerve block. There's a sac of nerves behind the pancreas and they put needles in it to relieve pain. I have a nerve disease which makes my nerves misfire and contract my muscles. The procedure was very painful and didn't work for me. I've done every treatment possible there is but because of my two ducts they continuously clog. Ask your doctor what treatments are available in your area, not every hospital is equipped with pancreatic equipment.