Can you be tired for 1,5 years, have bloating and it is not cancer?

[Wobblyheart]

I know you all are tired of me. Heck, I am tired of me. I am so tired of feeling absolutely exhausted. It's been 20 months now and every day no matter rest or not... just full body total exhaustion.

So many tests done, nothing to be found. I also lost my appetite or seem to get full quicker than before. Put on weight and my belly really is big and feels heavy like I am pregnant again (I am 100% not).

My thought is now colon cancer but I had normal fit and calprotectin tests. My bowels habits did change a bit? But seems that I have normal weeks sometimes too. I am awaiting a referral for a rapid diagnostic center and just so scared. We couldn't find any innocent explanation for my tiredness and I read about cancer fatigue and it is exactly how i feel.

I am 38 and have a 1,5 yo.

My sleep isn't great but not the worst, I don't do more than a normal mum would do with regards to household etc.

So if a kind person reads this, is this possible to be tired for over 1,5 years, have normal blood and normal fit and to have cancer?

HAEMOGLOBIN is 135 (normal range 120-160)
Ferritin 57.6 (normal range 13-150)

OP - it doesn't matter what anyone says, or your doctors say, or the many many tests you've had say. You are convinced you have cancer and are completely unwilling to acknowledge the impact on your health of poor diet, sleep and stress.

All I can say is that even if you do have cancer, the poor eating, poor sleep, stress etc will not help any cancer treatment so even if you believe the problem is cancer, I'd suggest that you put some effort into the other things anyway.

Also just noticed that my White Blood Cell count went from 4.4 in October 23 to 9.9 (bordeline abnormal as range is 3-10) now in May 24 - does anyone know if this is a concern?

You aren't well - you need to get help for your anxiety from a professional, not look for constant reassurance on here.

No matter what anyone tells you, there'll be another reason why you're somehow convinced you have cancer.

Whilst I 100% have awful health anxiety, it I'd driven by the fact that I have this unexplained fatigue. And by fatigue I don't mean your usual being tired thing that I have experienced for years before. No, it's debilitating. It's crushing me, it's an elephant on my chest, breathing is an effort, washing hands is en effort. Even sitting down I feel something is just pressing on me. I am miserably exhausted. It feels like a disability and doesn't change day by day no matter what I do.

But that's describing classic anxiety. It knocks you on your arse constantly .It affects every part of your life.

Okay, I am just posting this here for anyone else who might be scared:

"Repeated testingScientists from the University of Edinburgh used two groups of NHS Lothian patients who had been referred urgently to the Edinburgh Colorectal Surgery Unit to compare the use of one FIT test or two.
They found that doing two FIT tests detected 96.6 per cent of bowel cancer cases correctly, whereas undertaking just one test only detected 84.1 per cent. The median time between the two tests was 13 days.
The study also showed that 16.8 per cent of those to complete two tests had sufficient variation in their test results to change their management plan. This occurred irrespective of significant bowel conditions and highlights the benefit of repeated testing, experts say.
The study, funded by the Scottish Government, Chief Scientist Office (Scotland) and CRUK Scotland Centre, showed that patients with two negative FIT tests have a very low underlying risk of bowel cancer (0.17 per cent) and may not need to undergo tests that may cause harm.
Researchers say that while there is an increase in positivity rate by 7.3 per cent using the double-FIT strategy, the workload implications are low given patients with two negative tests may be given alternative management plans. "

https://www.ed.ac.uk/news/2023/double-testing-better-at-identifying-bowel-cancer

No that's not an concern.

Are you receiving any medical help for your anxiety? Your GP ought to be focusing on that rather than sending you for countless other tests.

A high white blood cell count can also actually be caused by stress.

A spot of red blood once on the toilet paper isn’t the same as having blood in your stool from cancer though. Surely you would have it happen more than once and be getting worse if it was bleeding from cancer.

Yep, I have had CBT and on anti-anxiety meds. I think I am beyond help!

Thank you, I think it was more than just some blood on wiping, I think it was in the bowl but I can't quite remember but it made me think I had a period starting.

It has been over a year since that happened though and whilst i had no improvement in symptoms, they didnt get worse so I suppose this and two negative FITs (Feb and May) is something that I need to focus on and remind myself of.

It could of been something like piles that caused the little bit of bleeding. A one time off bleeding is really nothing to be concerned about, if it helps I have IBS and I had a period where I bled every single time for months and it was still nothing to be concerned about. My ibs is managed through medication and diet now.

I think it'll help looking at your diet, your sleep will also have a negative impact on your anxiety. Stay away from google and googling up blood test levels etc. google always says cancer or death and it's always nearly never anything bad.

Very true. Thank you. I should know better.

I think I am still not over trauma of last year when I had a suspected soft tissue sarcoma. At that point it was a very noticable 5cm tumour on my glute and it took 4 months to diagnose. I had a newborn and the waiting was torture. Thankfully it was a rare but benign tumour. So it is not always what we fear it is.

I've got to snap out of it and give myself a smack on the head.

Thanks all for your messages. I will update once I had my investigations done as I find it helpful when searching similar threads.

Did you say that you'd had an abdo ultrasound? Just throwing it out there for reassurance that if there was a tumour pressing on your bladder etc surely that would show on the scan?

I'd hope so too but just spent too much time reading https://www.bowelcanceruk.org.uk/how-we-can-help/real-life-stories/younger-people-with-bowel-cancer/ and it isnt! I think it depends where the tumour is.

Alarmingly, many young women had super similar symptoms including fatigue between 18-6 months before diagnosis.

I feel quite sick. I used to completely ignore all of my gut symptoms even though my mum was concerned. Because for years I've been to doctors abd they have been saying ibs...

What do you want from this thread?

Every single time someone suggests something, you bat it back and say it can't be that and must be cancer because of some random symptom you had months ago.

You need to go and get some help for your mental health and stop using Doctor Google.

But in that story the blood test results picked up something an abnormal right away? You’ve had blood tests, scans, etc and nothing has come up?

Why don’t you just pay for a colonoscopy privately then and put yourself out of this misery?

Unless the colonoscopy actually detects cancer, OP will convince herself that they could have missed something.

I am all for testing to rule things out (it saved my life!) but unless and until she actually gets decent help for her health anxiety, nothing is going to stop her worrying.

I get horrendous lethargy / tiredness, bloating and diarrhoea when having too much dairy. I get so tired, I am on the verge of falling asleep.
Intolerance or allergy related maybe?

“I also have urinary symptoms and they are linked to my prolapse but it could be the tumour pressing on the bladder”.

OK, you need to stop this now.

You’re coming up with so many detailed and varied things that you’ve ‘read’ and obsessing about imaginary cancer again, as if its fact. That in itself will make you ill.

Go back to the doctor, you clearly do need medical help for your anxiety, but in the meantime listen to most posts here and really try to get some proper rest, eat better, fresh air every day and stop reading health related stuff this minute.

It can’t do any harm and may help.

Agree. We’re not getting through - I’m done.

I’m going to have to mute this thread. I truly wish you all the best, @Wobblyheart.

I read this in mrs doubtfire's voice