NC for this as I have a similar question to OP. I don't want to hijack the thread but would be grateful to have some insight from someone who may have had similar experiences
I'm 55 and was firmly diagnosed with PCOS (blood tests and ultrasound) way back in 1990.
In my 20s and most of my 30s I only had one period a year. Maybe two. Usual PCOS symptoms.
In the past two or three years my periods have now become monthly for the first time in my life. They are briefer, heavier, and also I feel sick and have digestive problems around the time of my period. I used to get more pain with periods but no nausea at all.
I looked online and saw this is normal for women with PCOS. As they hit perimenopause, periods can get regular and change. So I wasn't worried.
Last month, I went to the dr about the indigestion. It was a new (young) dr in the practice and she took one look at my age and said I might have to have an endoscopy and, rather than eliminate things like coeliac disease, GERD or an ulcer, etc - went straight on to the 'c' word. She gave me a PPI drug but only enough for a couple of weeks. If the indigestion comes back, then we might have to send you for an endoscopy.
Well, tablets ran out and I have had milder indigestion than before but of course my period had come back, so I put it down to that.
Went back this week and her reaction is "OMG! Cancer! You're still bleeding at 55? No-one bleeds at 55! Bleeding at 55 is totally wrong! I'm sending you for investigations for endometrial cancer!"
FFS. So now I'm potentially going to be investigated for two types of cancer when all I went to the dr's for was indigestion and to ask for a blood test I have had done before, to see how far I was off the menopause. (My last dr did this about 5 years ago and said then I was a way off).
She made me make an appt with her next week for a smear test and to see if she thinks I need referring to gynae.
Now the older dr is around my age, and clearly had some knowledge of PCOS, too. So I rang up on the pretext of needing to change the smear appointment and casually mentioned to the receptinist that it was a gynae problem I had originally seen the other GP for, and would it be possible to swap me over to the original GP? I was expecting a fight but the receptionist said "No problem!" The more popular dr has a longer waiting list though so I won't be able to get the smear test til May.
The younger dr didn't listen to a word I said and clearly had no intention of even trying to rule out perimenopause by doing the blood test. I am fairly confident the other GP will do the blood test again and if, after the smear, I need to go to gynae - fair enough.
I have seen a lot of locums and random GPs over the years at this practice and never disliked any of them. But there seemed something odd about this new GP - the slightest thing instantly being possible cancer, and no attempt to rule out other things before referring you to the big guns and invasive tests...
I had been so stressed out with her but immediately feel better I have managed to get back in with the original GP in the practice, with whom I had a rapport.
The overreaction to my PCOS-and-perimenopause symptoms was really odd. She could at least have said "Well what you describe is common with women with PCOS, but let's investigate other possibilities to be on the safe side." But it was this frankly ageist "Eek! You're 55! Definitely cancer!" (To the point she didn't even bother about other possibilities or, let's face it, more statistically likely things) That really shook me.
I presented maybe 5 years ago, maybe less, with identical symptoms to the other GP and it was take bloods and then take it from there...
Husband, older than me, went to another dr in the same practice, presenting with identical indigestion symptoms and no mention of endoscopy or the 'c' word.
I can't decide if she just lacks experience/emotional intelligence/bedside manner - is genuinely alarmist - or just happens to know nowt about PCOS (fair enough she is only a G not a specialist) or er.. 'older' women. Or whether there is genuine ageism at play?
I will see my original dr and go with whatever she wants to do about both the indigestion and the weird PCOS periods. But anyone else experienced similar, when reachng a certain age?