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I Think I Might Have Cancer

Posted , 5 users are following.

NobodyCares
NobodyCares

Hello everyone. I'm a 23 year old female who's been struggling with different symptoms since March. Instead of running you through each & every symptom I've been dealing with since March, I'm just going to name the symptoms that are convincing me that some kind of Cancer is likely for me.

First of all, I've always been very thin but I went from 107 pounds to 99 pounds in a matter of weeks. I have no eating disorders & the weight loss was completely unintentional. 

Second of all, I noticed what I think is petechiae on my arms & neck. It looked like little blood spots that would seem to either disappear or perhaps blend into my skin somehow within a few days. I would literally watch them form. The odd thing about this is that I had blood work done & my platelets were normal. All of my white blood cells were normal & most of my red blood cells were normal. ( I had two kinds of red blood cells that were only slightly below normal, I forgot which ones though. My red blood cells used to be a little bit worse. I was said to be anemic by doctors at the ER a month or two ago but since then, my red blood cells improved on their own somehow. )

Third of all, I feel sleepy a lot. The thing about it though is that whenever I try to go to sleep, I can't because I'm restless & can't stop moving around.

Lastly, I get really hot at night in particular. I'm hot throughout the day but it gets worse at night & certain parts of me do sweat although I'm never drenched in sweat. I can't sleep when it's too hot in the room, I always need the fan on & then I'm fine.

I've seen several nurses & doctors & no one can tell me what's wrong. They all only look at my blood work & decide that since it looks okay, I must be okay. It's incredibly frustrating & stressful.

I see a doctor on June 19th but I guess I would like some advice on what I can do for myself, if anything, until then. How can I accept the possibility that I have some kind of Cancer without freaking out & becoming overly anxious? Is there even a way to do this?! 

Thank you all in advance. <3

 

0 likes, 15 replies

15 Replies

  • JoyKF53
    JoyKF53 NobodyCares

    Posted

    Well for a start NobodyCares, we care, and we're listening. I've had lymphoma so know a little bit about cancer, only from personal experience you understand. Losing weight can be a symptom of cancer but it can also be a symptom of many other conditions, including thyroid disorders. The blood spots on your arms can also be caused by various disorders. Cancer of the type I had is not diagnosed by blood tests, mine were normal before diagnosis, during treatment and after, but they can show up a multitude of other ailments. If you can't get to sleep of a night (usual time to be tossing and turning through anxieties) that is why you're sleepy during the day. And trust me, the night sweats caused by cancer are so severe that you would have to change the bed and your night clothes, even the mattress would be damp! I'm not medically trained but I can tell you that all your symptoms could be caused by other disorders apart from cancer so try and keep an open mind if you can. Tell the doctor your fears and tell him you need to have them laid to rest so you don't sink into a state of depression. It may be run of the mill for doctors but it definitely isn't for us! Good luck and let me know how you get on.

    • NobodyCares
      NobodyCares JoyKF53

      Posted

      Thank you so much. <3

      I'm sorry that you had Lymphoma but I'm happy to hear that it seems to be a thing of the past for you. <3 How did you get rid of it?

      If you don't mind, will you please tell me the symptoms you had aside from the terrible sweating? Did having air on you help at all? 

      Also, did your appetite descrease at all? The thing that confuses me about myself is the fact that I sometimes have excessive hunger off & on along with the weight loss. I want to connect the two somehow but perhaps I shouldn't. 

      I had my thyroid checked & at first, my TSH was slightly elevated but it somehow fixed itself within a few weeks. The odd thing is that I have almost every symptom of hyperthyroidism but my thyroid is fine. 

      I know that Lymphoma can't be found through blood work & that scares me even more. I heard that Cancer can hide every well altogether. 

      My problems seem to magnify whenever I try to go to sleep for some reason. I sometimes wake up with my heart beating funny/irregular & I feel crazy or something. It's difficult to explain. I can't ever just go to sleep because I'm too restless & can't stop moving around. I don't know what's going on but I wish it could be found already so it could potentially be solved. sad

      I'm trying to keep an open mind but it's getting extremely difficult at this point. sad Something inside of me just feels like I either have Cancer or some other type of life threatening ilness(es).

      Thank you for your advice, I will tell my doctor all of my fears as long as I'm not made to feel stupid or not cared about.

      June 19th feels like lightyears from now. sad

      Thank you again. smile <3

    • JoyKF53
      JoyKF53 NobodyCares

      Posted

      Ok, let's see what we can come up with. Health anxiety in itself is a disorder, perhaps this might be something to consider. I had Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma, diagnosed after I found a small lump behind my left ear. A surgical biopsy was performed (under local anaesthetic) followed by 3 rounds of chemotherapy and 17 days of radiotherapy. I had bone marrow aspiration, CT scans, MRI scans, a PET scan, ultrasound and numerous blood tests. But I would say that your symptoms are not indicative of lymphoma. The only change in appetite that I had was suddenly not liking roast dinners or meals with gravy. My weight didn't change at all. Everyone's problems magnify at night when you're lying in bed in the dark tossing and turning. I would say that the strange feelings that you're having at night are all caused by anxiety. Tell your doctor everything that you have told me, personally I would say that the odds are in your favour. Let me know, your appointment is not that far away. I'm having gamma knife surgery in August for a brain tumour (meningioma), not related to the cancer - should have been in May but my husband was rushed into hospital for emergency surgery on a perforated bowel so my surgery got postponed so I could look after him! Wouldn't believe it if you read about it would you LOL

    • NobodyCares
      NobodyCares JoyKF53

      Posted

      I don't think I have health anxiety, I just don't know what's going on with myself. I mean I have symptoms of different illnesses so I feel like it's almost inevitable for a person like me to kind of jump around & get extremely worried, especially when no one can find what's wrong. Additionally, you hear things such as Cancer can hide very well & all of this other stuff, it's all just a recipe for disaster.

      How was chemotherapy for you? I read & heard such terrible things about it. You went through a lot but as long as the Cancer is gone, that's the most important thing. I'm sorry for all you had to go through though! sad <3

      Yeah, what I go through at night could be caused by anxiety but I'm unsure about that. I used to have panic attacks in the past & what I'm going through now doesn't really feel like that but who knows. 

      I hope you're right about the odds being in my favor. I will be sure to tell my doctor everything I've written here & I can only hope that he really listens to me. 

      Ugh, is the tumor malignant? I hope not. sad It sucks, as you get older, it seems like it's just health problem after health problem.  sad

      I'm sorry about your husband as well.  sad  How is he? 

      Good luck with your surgery. <3

       

    • lynda20916
      lynda20916 JoyKF53

      Posted

      Hi Joy, 

      I had sent you a private message yesterday to see how you were doing.  Perhaps you didn't get it, or you prefer not to respond to them.  

      At any rate, because of this post, I know how you're doing.  I hope your husband is improving. And, I'm sorry that your surgery had to be postponed. Take care,

      Lynda

    • JoyKF53
      JoyKF53 lynda20916

      Posted

      Hi Lynda. I did reply so I don't know what happened there, I would never ignore someone who's been kind enough to message me. Well, you know how things are with me now, I think it will be a slow recovery for my husband and I'm wishing my surgery was over and done with, but I'm sure everything will turn out well in the end. Thank you for taking the time to contact me.

    • JoyKF53
      JoyKF53 NobodyCares

      Posted

      Hi. It's very unlikely that the tumour is malignant, but needs to be dealt with as it can grow and cause problems. My husband is making a slow recovery but I'm sure will get there given time. Chemotherapy was fine. Provided you take the medication they give you (anti nauseants etc.) and rest when you can I found it quite easy to handle. But I really don't think that's something that you will have to worry about. Keep in touch.

    • lynda20916
      lynda20916 JoyKF53

      Posted

      So good to hear from you. I looked at my messages, and though the site indicated you had read it, it recorded no response.  I know sometimes comments on the site can vanish.

      Please know that you and your husband are in my thoughts!  Please let me know how you're getting on! xx

      Lynda

    • JoyKF53
      JoyKF53 lynda20916

      Posted

      Will do. If you don't hear from me give me a nudge by messaging me. Thank you for thinking of us x

    • NobodyCares
      NobodyCares JoyKF53

      Posted

      That's good news. I know what you mean & I hope everything goes smoothly for you & for your husband regarding his recovery. 

      I'm really scared about possibly needing a biopsy & having to start chemotherapy or something but I guess it's going to be what it's going to be & whatever happens, I'm going to need to fix it & be a big girl about it.

      Thank you for all of your replies to my posts.

  • Guest
    Guest NobodyCares

    Posted

    Hi, most of the symptoms you are describing (weight loss, feeling hot, feeling anxious and restless, skin rashes) can occur in hyperthyroid patients. The symptoms are typically worse at night since the thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) shows a daily variation with the maximum occurring at around 3 pm.   

    A simple blood test, called thyroid function test, can confirm if you are (borderline) hyperthyroid. The basic test includes TSH and FT4 (free T4).

    Another typical symptom of hyperthyroidism is a raised (resting) heart rate (for example during the night). By raised I mean 90 beats per minute or higher.

    Good luck, and hope you get better soon.   

    • NobodyCares
      NobodyCares Guest

      Posted

      Thank you so much for your response. <3 I had my thyroid checked & at first, my TSH was slighly elevated which was odd because I feel like I have almost every symptom of hyperthyroidism. A few weeks later however, my TSH fixed itself somehow. As of right now, it seems that my thyroid is fine.

      rolleyes

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