How I Discovered I had Colorectal Cancer | Amy's 3b Colon Cancer Story | The Patient Story

Hi, I just got back from a colonoscopy and endoscopy. The results were completely normal. I have had blood in my rectum, unexplained anemia, severe stomach pain, constipation and based on all my Google findings, diagnosed myself with advance colon cancer. They found Nothing, not even a benign polyp. I wanted to share this because I couldn’t find enough of these types of posts when I was looking for answers myself. Sometimes the research we do drives us completely bonkers, wasting hours and days and even weeks assuming the absolute worst! There are soooo many other explanations for symptoms than the worst case scenarios & statistically, it is more likely NOT to have cancer than to have it🙌🏼 Unfortunately, I know this is NOT everyone’s experience and people are diagnosed everyday and have to walk the hard battle out but I wanted to be a voice of hope in the self diagnosis process. Get tested. Don’t ignore symptoms. But don’t assume❤️

I went to my doctor for rectal bleeding and pain. She told me it wss just hemmoroids and said I could not get a colonoscopy until I turned 50. After a year of complaining, I finally got my colonoscopy. May 2022 is when I got the news of my colon cancer. I spent most of 2022 in treatment. Chemotherapy, radiation, and so many trips to Mayo in Rochester, MN. I'm now in recovery. Thank you for sharing these stories. It's good to know I'm not alone.

I was 21 when I had cancer. I had surgery and chemo and so far I’m still alive and kicking. Thank you for sharing your story!

Good for you for speaking up. My step-brother died of colon cancer at 32. He suffered for years, but was too embarrassed to tell anyone, even a doctor. They found his journal hidden.

I had Stage 3 Colon Cancer... Lynch. I beat it! 🙏🙏🙏

I was 64 and had never had a colonoscopy. Tsk tsk. I was tired. Anemic. And bleeding that I ignored for at least a year. At first, blood when I wiped. Then blood all the time in my underwear. Then I was passing blood clots. Then the pain that finally sent me to the ER. I got a CT scan and the sweet Dr made a colonoscopy appointment for me, put his hand on my shoulder and said, don’t miss it. And I didn’t. A couple of weeks later I left the hospital without that 2a egg sized tumor and 12” of large intestine. Had an ileostomy for two months and have lived to tell the tale. Love to you girl.

Lost my spouse to colorectal cancer at age 48, she did not catch it early, married 17 years, I'm a percussionist in a classic rock band, met her at a gig, thank you for helping others and I'm praying for you and your family, 🙏🙏, be strong.

I'm 22 and getting my first colonoscopy. It feels awful when your family doctor waves your concern over symptoms. Labelling it as "just your anxiety" is so overwhelming. Luckily I have a specialist who listens. My heart goes out to you.

I am so honored to be a small part of your survival story! You were such an amazing patient with so much love and light. Thank you for bringing that everyday.

I thought my bleeding was internal hemorrhoids but it ended up being colon and liver cancer. I've been receiving treatments for thirteen months and I always tell anyone new at the Cancer Center to never lose hope.

I’m 51 and was diagnosed with 3B as well 2 yrs ago. I’m currently in remission but continue to test every 3 months for recurrence or metastasis. For me, the mental anguish of whether this comes back or not is far more worse than the surgery and 6 months of chemo. I wish you all the best in your recovery

I cannot believe this poor woman had such a hard time getting a colonoscopy after BLEEDING. That's freaking tell-tale, even if you're younger than 45. We have an awful food supply that's been sprayed with Round-Up, we're bombarded with fast food and sugar every day of our lives, new moms are stressed beyond belief, and people are getting sicker much younger. Doctors should already be aware of this and be willing to test. Bravo to this woman for fighting for her health, and standing up to the lab coats that all apparently think patients are stupid or hysterical.

Exact thing thing happened to me. I was diagnosed a year ago at the age of 39 (originally told it was just “anxiety”) I have went through all of the radiation and chemo and surgery coming up in a few weeks. Definitely been the hardest year of my life but I have 3 young kids so we must push forward. Thank you for being an advocate and sharing your story. It’s so helpful to know we are not in this fight alone💜🙏🏻

So glad you pushed to get the colonoscopy. I am so annoyed when doctors shrug things off especially because some of us pay a lot of money for health insurance.

I am stunned by your story! I just beat stage 3 colon cancer and my diagnosis came in 3 days after going to the E.R. The E.R. is the place to go if you have a "gut" feeling.

Thank you for sharing your story about colorectal cancer I’m on my therapy now and I’m hopeful that I can overcome this serious situation. God is Good!

I’m praying for complete healing!

Your doc is handling it differently (for others going forward) because YOU were brave and insistent. Many, many people have you to thank.

Very interesting… just so u know, im a 38 year old man & was told by most doctors to see a psychologist. In my opinion, theres only a small percentage of doctors that are still curious or care enough to investigate past a few blood tests. The sad truth is if they thought i was a celebrity or abundantly rich, they would of tried harder. no accountability for the common person.

Oh my heart hurts for you and all you have gone through. Good for you for advocating! It is SO hard to face a medical professional and stand your ground like that. I was born with a very common heart defect and it rarely causes any discernible issues, especially in early to mid-life. I started having crazy arrhythmias, super fast heart rate (180’s just sitting still,) getting very short of breath, and palpitations. I spent more than a year seeing cardiologists and more often than not I heard, “it’s probably just stress, you’re too young (I’m now 41) you’re a busy mom of 3, do you drink a lot of coffee and have you tried meditating?” I KNEW it was more than that. I FINALLY found a cardiologist who really listened and went the extra mile with extensive and invasive testing. And finally, I learned what is really happening to my heart…it is failing. In exactly 4 weeks from today I will be undergoing full on open heart surgery to replace two severely leaking valves. I was so angry at first, thinking about all of the doctors who blew me off. But now I’m just grateful I will have the chance to see my kids grow up. Stay strong, you are a warrior! 🖤