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Original poster

Pancriatic C any support or advice

81 replies

kitcat2000 · 02/08/2015 20:06

Hi iv been feeling unwell for some time ,im 43 diagnosed 6 years ago with IBS seen consultant recently as very stressed and was making sure it was still IBS and wanted to check all was ok ...he said he still thinks just IBS but im not convinced ..

iv googled and convinced i have PC Sad

im pushing to see another consultant NHS and further scans but the doctors just think im over reacting

iv had full bloods done last week , liver FBC inflamitory markers , all normal

but im still not sure

my other symotoms are

bowel motions , mushy
extream fatigue
shivers at times
thirst
i do get from time to time not daily pain left side under ribs
(consultant always said was IBS )

im utterly convinced i have it ...
does anyone have experience of this and any good out comes ? im in tears as iv googled forums and seen such sad out comes ..Sad

im so worried ......

please be gentle im so scared ...

OP posts:
bwow · 03/08/2015 02:25

Sorry, but my grandmother died of PC, she had a late diagnosis. She had been suffering with back pain for years. Finally after a period of poor health she ended up in hospital with a diagnosis of some kind of gastro. As a pp said it wasn't until a scan was performed that the real problem was discovered.

Original poster
kitcat2000 · 03/08/2015 02:49

i cant sleep its going round in my head ... Sad
if it is ....would i have time to put things in place for my DC ...letters , boxes etc ....i cant bare the thought of leaving them ....i will need to put things in place for there future ...spend as much time with them ....im in tears ..i know this may sound extrem but is there help and fast if i needed these things sorted ..there my world we are so close .....
is there any good out comes with this C .....do some people live ?

OP posts:
Lagoonablue · 03/08/2015 07:08

You should go back to the GP and discuss your anxiety. It is horrible worrying about this.

Have you always had anxiety? Is there something else going on that may have triggered this? I too had HA and was convinced I had PC. Was always googling and going back to docs with various symptoms. Nothing would convince me I didn't have it. I even spent money on a private ultrasound. That was fine but then became convinced they had missed something and wanted a MRI scan! It was a horrible period in my life triggered by having a miscarriage. Í think I was just depressed and it showed itself in this anxiety.

I got over it eventually. But you should see your doctor really. The thing with HA is that you can keep having test after test and nothing will convince you. Your bloods have been normal and that is great. Your current symptoms are probably exacerbated by anxiety and as I said previously, test for coeliacs disease which has similar symptoms to IBS.

Also the HA forum recommended is really useful.

Lagoonablue · 03/08/2015 07:12

BTW you said you were diagnosed with IBS 6 years ago.........if this was PC you wouldn't still be alive after 6 years.

saintlyjimjams · 03/08/2015 07:15

I was going to say the same as lagoonblue. If you've been ill for 6 years it's not pancreatic cancer. You simply wouldn't still be here.

As others have said do look for treatment for health anxiety.

featherandblack · 03/08/2015 07:37

Hi there, I completely understand where you're coming from. If you're feeling a bit anxious, the information online about pancreatic cancer would be terrifying to read. Plus, some of the symptoms of pancreatic cancer and IBS do overlap, which is making you panic.

I have recent experience of pancreatic cancer through a close family member. I can second others who have said that it happens very quickly. You would not have time to feel unwell for ages with it. You haven't mentioned weight loss as a symptom - this would be happening too.

However, I don't think anything is going to put your mind at rest but a scan. If you can afford it, book a private one for asap. There's no point being in this much agony of mind.

Original poster
kitcat2000 · 03/08/2015 07:44

thanks im stil in bits , im inquiring about private CT or ultra scan with bupa , one poster said that PC can have no symptoms at all or IBS and miss diagnosed ...and things can change i ..... Sad

iv had HA for long time got worse this year as i havent felt well ..and its been one thing after another , blood tests , ovary scans , more blood tests ..
but this i think all fits with PC .... Sad

my DH isnt talking much to me this morning i just feel awful cant rid myself from this feeling ...

OP posts:
Original poster
kitcat2000 · 03/08/2015 07:49

sorry to hear that feather Sad thank you for replying

OP posts:
Wolpertinger · 03/08/2015 07:55

If you have the money for a private scan, spend it on some therapy for your health anxiety instead.

All those tests and scans are just feeding your anxiety and making you worse.

You've had loads of investigations, found nothing wrong and yet you don't feel in any way reassured do you? This is classic health anxiety.

Your DH is no doubt not saying much as he has no idea what to say and is fed up.

Baddz · 03/08/2015 08:01

Spend the money on therapy.
You need mh help.
no Dr - even a private one - will do a scan and expose you to radiation for no clinical reason.
There is no clinical reason for you to have a scan.

Baddz · 03/08/2015 08:03

The thing is...even a scan will not reassure you. You will still be convinced you have PC.
You need mh help.

Original poster
kitcat2000 · 03/08/2015 08:06

no im not convinced as this kind of C does not show un till to late ...as others have said on here , its not going to leave me until i get more scans ...in the mean time im in limbo in utter bits ...Sad
i do hate feeling like this its a living hell , i just cant see a way out ..
i lost my mum a few years back very suddenly not through PC but in the matter of 2 weeks ....this was so shocking for me im terrified the same will happen to me if i dont act and try prevent it happening for my DC ....they are my world and would be lost with out me as i am with out my mum , i cant bare the thought of leaving them ..its just going round in my head all the time and like the doctors arnt listening ....

OP posts:
Baddz · 03/08/2015 08:08

My dad dropped dead 2 years ago.
I gave him CPR but couldn't save him.
I am not my dad.
You are not your mum.
You are ill, mentally ill, and you need some therapy ASAP or this will ruin your life.

Baddz · 03/08/2015 08:10

Your Drs are listening.
You have NO clinical symptoms of PC.
Your bloods are NORMAL.
You have ibs, which is made worse by anxiety. You are anxious. Your ibs is getting worse.
It's you who isn't listening!

Northernlurker · 03/08/2015 08:12

It's not the doctors who aren't listening. It's you.
You need to print out this thread and take it to the GP and ask for help. Your health anxiety is going to impact on your children's lives too if you don't do something about it.
Scans etc aren't the answer. You won't get a CT scan because there is no medical reason to expose you to the small amount of radiation used. You might et an ultrasound but if you do it won't reassure you. You'll have it then decide it wasn't sensitive enough or it was looking in the wrong place.

sandgrown · 03/08/2015 08:16

My DM died of pancreatic cancer .Her symptoms were similar to diabetes and her legs swelled up. She also had bad backache. Full diagnosis was not made until after her death which was only a few weeks after becoming ill. I think from what you describe you do not have PC. Please talk to someone about your anxiety

ShipwreckedAndComatose · 03/08/2015 08:16

I have experience of PC and someone surviving it. I don't know how knowing this helps you really. It was picked up in tests and treated. It was harsh treatment and the medical staff moved quickly once they had detected it. If they had any indication at all that you had it, you would be in and scanned. But they have not brought you in because you do not have it.

your issue is not PC but anxiety. I absolutely agree with others, you have already had tests and you don't believe them so further scans are not going to help as you will not believe them either. Spend time treating the anxiety Flowers

ABTwife · 03/08/2015 08:18

Another one saying it's YOU that isn't listening.

You need therapy for your anxiety. Not expensive tests that are a waste of everyone's time. They wouldn't make you feel better anyway, your anxiety will just move to the next condition you convince yourself you have.

That's how anxiety works and that's what is wrong with you.

Original poster
kitcat2000 · 03/08/2015 08:23

so sorry about your mum sandgrown .... must have been awful Sad

im still so scared , would it get picked up from normal bloods though ? like the ones iv had ....
i do need help with the anxiety but at the moment these thoughts are taking over i will try talk to a doctor today ....

OP posts:
Wolpertinger · 03/08/2015 08:28

These thoughts ARE the anxiety, they aren't a different issue.

Did you ever have help with your feelings about the loss of your mum? It sounds like this is very tied up in what you are going through now.

Baddz · 03/08/2015 08:28

Yes it would.
Your inflammatory markers would be off the scale I would imagine.

Baddz · 03/08/2015 08:29

Yes. I think some bereavement counselling may help you.

mamadoc · 03/08/2015 08:30

You need an SSRI antidepressant and some CBT.

Those are going to help immeasurably more than another scan. I am not going to mention your idea or reasons against as it is unhelpful to you.

Have you ever had any treatment for anxiety and depression? You could be feeling so much better in a month or so if you did.

Go to the GP and ask for an antidepressant and a mental health referral.

PunkrockerGirl · 03/08/2015 08:33

My brother has got pancreatic cancer and doesn't have long to live. I mean this kindly, OP, but your bloods would be very abnormal, you'd be jaundiced and would have lost loads of weight if you had pc.
Stay away from Google. As a diagnostic tool it's as much use as a chocolate teapot!
Anxiety is a horrible, horrible thing. That's what you need treatment for. Don't waste NHS resources on needless scans and tests which you won't believe anyway.
Flowers

Original poster
kitcat2000 · 03/08/2015 08:35

thank you all , i know your trying to help me , just so hard to get any perspective on it all at eh moment , rational thinking and then theres irrational thinking thats massive ...and i cant trust any of them .... Sad so it all goes round in my head till i have tests /scans for constant reasuurance ....to some this all prob sounds so silly but i can say its a living hell, and i just cant find the way out ....

OP posts: