"too young to have bowel cancer"

[DrPatient]

In October, I start having bloating, abdominal pain and rectal bleeding. I tried to put up with and from googling just assumed it was haemorrhoids and would resolve itself. Towards the end of November, the pain got excruciating over the course of a day and at about 2am one night I phoned 111. They advised me to go to A&E. I was in hospital for five days and they removed my appendix - but said it wasn't inflamed when they removed it. The pain, bloating and bleeding continued. I had a tonsillitis in February and, because I get it very often (always have and, I assume, always will) the GP wanted to check it wasn't something sinister. The blood test showed I have iron-deficiency anaemia so I'm on tablets for that.
It's obviously now July and I still have bloating, abdominal pain, bizarre squitsy bowel movements (I'm sorry, tmi) and bleeding. My granddad died from bowel cancer before I was born and my dad had it when I was a child.
My GP has said I'm too young to have bowel cancer and that it's "unheard of" at my age so she won't refer me for tests. I've just found a series of blogs on Bowel Cancer UK called "Never Too Young" that have plenty of people my age and younger who were diagnosed with bowel cancer, all have my symptoms and were all told by their GPs that they were too young to have bowel cancer. They're all advising to insist on getting tested but my GP flat-out refuses and is adamant that my symptoms are just stress related.
Has anyone else had these symptoms and it been stress related? Is there anything I can do?

I hate the 'you're far too young' response. Its appalling as sadly there are several cases of young people getting, and passing away from cancer etc so it is not true that you are far too young. And if it really is true then why do child get cancers?

They really need to send you for some sort of camera. When i had bowel issues in recent years (movements had totally changed and I was bloated and in pain alot, all I was passing was mucus and lots of it, sorry tmi) over the course of 3 months I think it was, I tried several medications and despite 2 normal blood test results I was still referred for a sigmoidoscopy. So your GP needs to bloody change their tune and get you the appropriate testing.

I really hate that lately everything comes down to costs and my experience is that a GP (mine and my parents always do this) will be very honest that they don't want to try that as its cost too much money. Its terrible as in some cases doing the test in time could save lives.

Please persist OP

My friend was diagnosed with terminal bowel cancer at 25. It took a while for diagnosis because he was "too young". These things are extremely unlikely. But not impossible.

Your original GP is irresponsible, incompetent and ill-informed. I would make a formal complaint about them even just on the basis of them saying you are 'too young' and that it 'never happens'. It clearly does, and as a GP, it is THEIR RESPONSIBILITY to keep abreast of these medical facts and statistics. It is their job to keep informed, and obviously they are not bothering to do that, which only puts peoples lives in jeopardy. That you have bowel cancer in your family makes it even more something to take seriously. Make a serious formal complaint, start by contacting/emailing Bowel Cancer UK, let them know your symptoms and tell them the name of this GP. They can perhaps advocate for you/help you escalate this, and help you get the tests you need.

I had a Barium Enema (xray of the bowels, which is how bowel cancer is diagnosed) at aged 11, my GP ordered it because my stools were jet black. Lucky I was clear, but even at age 11 my GP took it seriously.

As luck would have it, 3 years later my mum had all the symptoms you do (I have a clear memory of her and I watching a movie at home one night - The Gremlins, and her needing to go on the toilet frequently during it, and gulping Mylanta, she was in a lot of pain - I'll never forget that movie because of that night), so GP ordered the BE again, for mum this time.

The xray showed she had bowel cancer. She had part of her Sigmoid Colon removed.

21 years on, she is a survivor, (though has a colonoscopy every 2 or 3 years) because our family's GP acted quickly (my mum's father/my GF died of bowel cancer, so the GP probably took that into consideration). He has retired now, but I am so, so, so glad we had him as our GP. And it was only a tiny country town practice. But damn good Drs.

Could it be inflammatory bowel disease? You need to phone ur gp back and relay your concerns.

My general view of some GPs is that they take far too conservative an approach on some things. Part of me thinks that they feel they have to safeguard colleagues in hospitals from doing what they see as un-necessary work. Also are they trying to save money either for their practice or for the NHS in general? In the mean time the poor patient has put all their trust in them and might go away and not return. They might have the beginnings of something serious but dont return until more obvious symptoms present themselves. By then its advanced,more difficult to treat or too late.

I recently learned that the NHS in my area (Manchester) has paused routine colonoscopy screening due to covid. WHY? There has been no massive rush of covid patients. The nightingale wards were pretty much empty. You still cant get to see a GP as theyve adopted a bunker mentality.

Bowel cancer screening in this country is a joke. In England its behind scotland and wales and well behind other developed countries.

They dont have routine BC screening until quite late in life

I buy my own FIT kit because the Government or NHS policy is to screen when you are over 50/55/60

www.letsgetchecked.com/gb/en/home-bowel-cancer-test/

Its a small price to pay. As far as i know, many areas are still using the old FOB kits and slowly migrating to the more sensitive FIT kits.

OK so you have to suspend your squeamishness and get up close and personal with poo but at least you know youve been checked.

That GP is wrong. Some younger people do get bowel cancer. I think you need a different GP and you need to make sure they’re aware of your family history and insist they rule out bowel cancer. Sadly, younger people who have it often have a genetic type. But obviously we don’t know that’s the case for you but you need to find out what is wrong.

On a more optimistic note my son had similar symptoms to you in his teens, though not anaemia. He was given cream for piles and sent on his merry way - symptoms continued. Eventually a new GP when he moved away sent him for a colonoscopy. They found something of a mess, fortunately not cancer though. A lot of inflammation and large polyps and he’s now being treated for a chronic bowel disease (ulcerative colitis). So it’s great it’s not cancer obviously but I’m sorry he didn’t get the right help sooner. It was about 10 years when he should have been having treatment and it’s really affected his quality of life all this time.

So, OP, something is causing your problems and you need to find out what it is, and why, and get it sorted.

I really hope you have had answers.

I would make sure you get an appointment and are taken seriously. I lost a friend to bowel cancer at the age of 22, he had all the symptoms of it but was too young! Since then all his family have check ups. So I don’t want to alarm you But please be assertive and make sure you get checked properly

I've had abdo pain and loose stools for a long time with obvious blood in them for two months, I too had my appendix out and then a hernia at the op site which needed a repair two years ago. My mum has UC and my maternal grandfather died of bowel cancer. My GP immediately ordered blood tests, a fit test (bowel cancer screen) and a faecal calprotectin test, which both came back very high so my local gastro consultant has cancelled my two week wait bowel cancer appointment and immediately booked an urgent CT scan and colonoscopy with biopsies. This has all happened within a week. See a new doctor. Please. I wish you all the best.

I should add I am 32 years old. They are taking it seriously.

OP, how did it go?

As another view. One of my GP colleagues referred someone in late 20s urgently because if ? Bowel cancer. The hospital put her as routine and wouldn't bring forward appts. She did have it. So it's not always the GPs fault either. Hope you have been referred now OP

OP, hope you're ok, how did you get on?

Push for it OP. My ex was fobbed off, turns out he had polyps which put him at risk of bowel cancer, had an operation and chemo as it had spread to a lymph node. He was lucky, very lucky they caught it. He was 40.