[Sunni]

Hi,
I was wondering if there was a medical doctor on the forum that I could talk to. I have some symptoms that are rather embarrassing to talk about "in public" and would appreciate an opinion on what you feel might be wrong with me. Thank you so much.

[CaptainForest]

Sunni,

I would like to suggest you go see a local doctor in your area. There might be tests that need to be run on you as well, and a doctor via the internet would not be able to assist you with that.

[Fr_Chuck]

First there may be one, but you should see a local doctor about any medical problem. Asking a doctor in their office is not public and will give the doctor the chance to see first hand, ask proper questions, and to have medical tests ran.

Also do you have the availability of some Nurse on Call program, most of the major private insurance companies in the US have Nurse Call programs, RN nurses on call to discuss medical issues with.
For that check with your insurance company.

Also there are some sites like www.webmd.com that offers good medical information that may be helpful. Remember often things like a heart attack may appear to be indigestion unless the proper tests are done.
So there is nothing like a face to face doctor visit.

I am not sure about a medical doctor being on here, I do know a couple who are suppose to be herbists, a naturapthic doctor or two.

[orange]

Yup I agree. My fiancé is a medical doctor, and he just returned home from the hospital, and so I asked him about you, but... he says it is best for you to go see a local physician, as he can't do much online. He could give you an idea of what was wrong, but without actually examining you and doing tests it's impossible to make a diagnosis. Plus legally he could get into trouble, if he gave you the wrong advice.

Depending on where you live, there are health lines you can call, and you can speak to a registered nurse, free of charge, about your medical condition. We have this in our province, and I've used it before myself. If you are too embarrassed to go to the doctor, you might want to call a hospital or clinic in your area and see if they have one of these health lines. The nurse will discuss the condition with you and might make you feel better about it. However, she too, in the end, will advise you to see a physician in person. So you need to see someone face to face in your own area. Please do!

[Sunni]

Hi all,
I know you all are right... I should see a doctor. I guess I'm just kind of scared about what he might say. I've been looking up symptoms of colon cancer and (it ain't pretty) it seems like I have some of the symptoms of it. My grandma had colon cancer, her niece and her daughter had colon cancer and I'm afraid it might be my turn. I just feel icky and tired all the time. I just wanted to see what an online doctor might say about my symptoms first before I go into the clinic.

[orange]

My mother also had cancer, so I can understand your fears about that. The problem is, symptoms that can be cancer can also be all kinds of other things. Cancer is like the worst case scenario. That's why seeing a doctor in person is best either way... if you have cancer, it's best because you will get prompt treatment, and if you don't have it, it's best because tests are the only thing that can rule it out.

What are your symptoms? If you just need a doctor to tell you what he thinks about the symptoms, I might be able to drag Alex on here later if you list them. He will tell you to go to the doctor regardless though.

[nwsflash]

He will tell you to go to the doctor regardless though

I agree with all the other posts you need to go see a real doctor in flesh. We can scear ourself sometimes with all the info that we can get on the net and medical books, but seeing a real person I'm sure will help you no end.

Please do go seek your doctor, call them first thing Monday moring! And request an urgent meeting with them, as I'm sure it will take a weight off your mind. Hope all goes well for you.

[orange]

Okay, here is the information I managed to pry out of the grouchy, tired and uncooperative Alex... haha. He reiterates that you should go to the doctor soon. And he adds:

Is there bright red blood in your faeces?
Do you have unexplained weight loss of more than 10 pounds in the last month?
Are you going to the bathroom more or less often than is usual for you, and has the shape of your faeces changed considerably?
Are you vomiting a lot?

If you have any of the above, go to the doctor as soon as you can. Those are all serious symptoms, not just of colorectal cancer, but of other conditions as well. If you don't have those symptoms but are still worried, go anyway and ask for bloodwork (especially iron levels) and screening for colorectal cancer. If you are over the age of 50, you should be screened for colorectal cancer annually, and if there is a history in your family, screening could begin even earlier.

Good luck!

[Sunni]

Hi Orange,
Thanks for writing back to me (we went to the in-laws for dinner and I just got back to the computer)

Lets see, where do I begin…ok, this last week I've been really tired (but I've been fighting with RLS lately and my meds, all of a sudden, for that doesn't seem to be helping much). I've also had a constant bloated feeling and my stomach feels hard most of the time. I don't eat tons at meals, but yet when I do eat I feel so full. I've also been so gassy and I can't remember the last time I had a “regular” BM. My BM's are very loose and I have to push them out. I feel constipated, but it comes out like tough diarrhea…one big long string. (This is the gross part I didn't want to talk about, lol)

I haven't noticed any blood in my stool or any weight loss. I feel nauseous quite often and have a week stomach but haven't thrown up. I also eat a TON of ice, everyday all day and evening. I've eaten ice like this for years…I'd rather eat ice than food, lol! (It's actually shaved ice, no syrup, just ice…it's better for my teeth *grin*)

I don't know, maybe I'm just a hypochondriac. Is there a simple blood test they can do to check for colon cancer or do they have to do that procedure they do up the hind-end? I am also 42 years old. Thank you so much for your help!

[orange]

Your symptoms are not normal and they *may* indicate something serious, so you should definitely go to your doctor as soon as you can! If it's just something simple like gastritis, at least you can still get screened for colorectal cancer. At 42 and with a family history, it's not too soon.

There is no blood test for colorectal cancer. Actually there are several screening tests which your doctor may use. He will choose the ones that are best for you, perhaps more than one, depending on your symptoms and the results of the tests. These include a digital exam (where the doctor puts his gloved finger into your rectum to check for growths), a fecal occult blood test (testing your stool for blood), a double contrast barium enema (giving you an enema with barium in it so that your colon can be viewed in a x-ray), a flexible sigmoidoscopy (a flexible thin tube with a camera on the end of it is inserted in your rectum, and the doctor then can look for growths in the lower part of the colon), or a colonoscopy (similar to the flexible signmoidoscopy, except that it is more extensive and looks at your whole colon, rather than just the lower part of the colon).

Hope that helps. Please, please go to the doctor. Alex and I will not be online for a couple of weeks after this morning... actually we are getting married today LOLL!! So I'm going to sign out here soon. But please let us know how things are going... leave a message here and I'll see it when I return in 2 weeks.

[Sunni]

Hi Orange! WB :)
Well, I didn't go to the doc, because I started feeling better. I think maybe it was a touch of stomach flu or something like that (everything is back to normal now, if you catch my drift ;) )

Thank you and Alex for all your help though, I sure appreciate it!
~Sunni

[Sunni]

Hi Orange! WB
Well, I didn't go to the doc, because I started feeling better. I think maybe it was a touch of stomach flu or something like that (everything is back to normal now, if you catch my drift )

Thank you and Alex for all your help though, I sure appreciate it!
~Sunni

[orange]

Oh good that's the best news! I'll let Alex know too. :)