Private scan scared of cancer

[Musshkina]

I’m so scared I have stomach cancer. I’m mid 30s. I paid for private ct which doctor has just said is normal but this is the report. AIBU to still be terrified that it could be stomach cancer?

I was but only for a couple of weeks I've been taking emoticons

Famitidine

That's really interesting. Thank you.

Nobody saying it isn't cancer will help
Another scan won't help
You will then convince yourself something else is cancer
It's mental health support and medication you need so that you can get on with your life because doing nothing all days gives you even more time to worry about things that don't exist

The scan was all clear, actually.
Even your GP said it was normal.
Why did you waste all that money, just to have a scan which you didn't need, and which you don't believe the result of?

What was the result of the second scan?

I won't get them for a week

@TheShellBeach was it clear? It has thickened lining

So that medication will have thickened your stomach, that's how it works. You don't have cancer.

@Balloonhearts would taking it for such a short period of time have thickened it though?

It doesn't mean cancer though

I have virtually no white blood cells. Not cancer
My ovary has a massive cyst on it. Not cancer

You're wasting your life on this

And I speak as someone who had crippling panic attacks over health anxiety and now I have none

I sent the GP a message with the screenshot of the results and I just got a reply saying "your scan is normal" do you think I should message again and ask for more clarification?

Can I remind you of this post from earlier in the thread.

Your GP has said YOUR SCAN IS NORMAL.

What more do you want?

You were advised up thread that "thickening" is not unusual when taking those medications, it lines your stomach to minimise the effect of any inflammation and allow it to calm down. Why will you not resume taking it to alleviate your symptoms? But your mh is not allowing you to listen properly and process the positive results. I doubt you would be kept waiting a week if they felt it was likely to be something sinister.

If you live with your parents, I assume they’re aware of your mental health struggles? Are they supporting you?

If you were my daughter, I’d be accompanying you to the GP as I imagine your health anxiety is not being raised. It needs to be and you need help. What if your child picks up on it?

Just as a hypothetical thinking exercise:

Let’s pretend for a moment that you’re right and it is cancer, and let’s pretend that it’s terminal and you have 6 months to live.

What would you do with that knowledge?

Are there things you would want to do? Places to visit? People to spend time with?
How would you make the most of those final months? Would you try to enjoy every day as best you can?

Why don’t you do that now, anyway? Nobody is immortal, nobody knows what tomorrow will bring, we are all in the same boat in that regard. All we can do is to make the most of today. Please don’t let fear about tomorrow rob you of your todays. Get some mental health support and listen to them xx

I had all your symptoms plus some intense stabbing pains in my stomach.

was just gastritis. Omeprazole helped ease the symptoms

And when this scan shows you don't have stomach cancer. Will you believe it or still be convinced you do have it? Thickening of the stomach lining is caused by various things not just cancer. The more probable cause to all your symptoms is gastritis and stress

CT scans are not the recommended first test for stomach cancer . If your GP thought you could have that they would have referred you on the 2w pathway to the local gastroenterology team - who would consider doing a gastroscopy.

Repeated normal CT scans are exposing you to unnecessary radiation.

Repeated normal CT scans are exposing you to unnecessary radiation.

Yes, which can increase your risk of cancer. Unnecessary scans will damage your physical health as much as they will your mental health.

The scans aren’t relevant. No comments on here about them do anything other than feed into OP’s health anxiety.
OP needs psych help. That’s all.

Hello Musshkina,

I wish you have a better day today.
things will get better. Xx

Yes of course. It works pretty much immediately and that is its purpose. To thicken your stomach lining to relieve the effects of acid inflammation. Taking it for even a week would do it and so would any other drug for the same purpose.

You don't have stomach cancer. By the time you started having symptoms it would be very immediately visible on the scan.

You probably have gastritis which is aggravated by stress.

As someone going through investigations for stomach cancer. A woman, mid 30s. I would say that you have to bear in mind that nowhere on there does it say you have a "mass of body structure" like my scans show and also my left superclavicular node is quite visibly swollen. A firm swelling that is causing no pain. Stomach cancer doesn't usually show many symptoms unless it is advanced and spread into the lymph node in the base of the neck where it meets the shoulder, hence why it looks like there is a little sausage in my neck. I have further urgent (NHS because I'm poor) scans tomorrow. Nothing about that scan result is telling me you have stomach cancer. I hope you get to the bottom of your symptoms and someone can put your mind at rest. It's a horrible worry to have and I sympathise greatly.

Hello @Musshkina have you had the results from your other scan?
I hope the medication is calming you down.