Esophagus

Hi all,

Thank you for your replies.

My GP and I were thinking anxiety initially - I am under a lot of stress right now as in a workplace dispute post cancer. I did PPI's in case it was acid reflux (they ended up making me more ill). I didn't think it was acid reflux as it was just something so small other than over the summer whenever I had a large drink of water I kept properly choking myself and couldn't understand why it kept happening.

The difference with barium swallow (which was fine - some people say this is an awful test it really wasn't) and an endoscopy is that you can do a biopsy with endoscopy. However, with the swallow test - they can see the same and also see how things are moving through your esophagus. This is why they know what area is being affected and know there is a physical problem. Mine is very near my stomach.

i believe you have 2 sets of waves that move food through to your stomach - I'm getting an extra set of these waves so food is resisting moving into my stomach and eventually it will want to come back up. For now it is moderate - so I'm just getting a cough and sometimes choking but there isn't really successful treatment. I need to know what's causing it - even if it isn't a recurrence it's still yet another problem to live with.

Debiann - I have been told it is very much like the problems that older people get which is why they have problems eating. One possible cause could be from having very heavy radiotherapy in 1999.

The irony is post treatment I really needed to lose weight and was struggling to do so - now it's never been so easy - I've lost yet another 2kg this week without even trying. I don't think I could eat anymore if I wanted. Whilst I'm still a bit overweight I'll just try and keep it steady - at least I can look forward to ice-cream and cheesecake if this carries on (silver-linings!).

And of course farmerlucy- having this causes anxiety.

Hopeful8201 I'm going to drop a note back to my GP though there's not much she'll be able to do and I can try and ring the hospital to see if I can get a cancellation. Otherwise - I jut have to wait for my oncologist to come through for me. I appreciate these things can be very serious.

I'm trying to distract myself. I'll let you know how it all goes.

Good luck with your test Kbeee.

Barbed.

I was woken a few nights ago with a terrible pain in my chest/abdomen area - unlike anything I had experienced before. It was quite frightening but passed after a a bit and I was able to go back to sleep. But it was one of those pains that is telling you that somethings not right. (And it wasn't wind.)

I had been debating to go and get my tumour markers checked again as they had risen significantly to indicate that there was a problem had been rising gradually but were hoovering round normal/high. It's been plaguing me (I'm second time TNBC and had problems with my treatment this time.) So I decided - especially after the pain incident - that I'd book a blood test. (I also getting again, what I describe as "my cancer smell" - it's quite horrid: acrid and sweet/teenage bedroom type smell).

Making the decision to get the test done actually relieved a lot of the stress I have been feeling.

And as I expected, they have risen yet again - for the fourth time running. So now they are in the definitely "high" category. I know people argue that they aren't reliable and there can be other reasons (many of which are other cancers and pregnancy) but it's how they are over time that's the factor and mine are rising.

And I'm symptomatic.

And then there's the fatigue and the very easy weight loss and loss of appetite.

I see my oncologist next month and will bring my result and she can test again (I know it's not the same lab). It's not definitive - I know that but in my mind it explains a lot about how I've been feeling - crap. (Super healthy diet - lost 12+ kg - regular exercise - gave up drinking 8 months ago - I shouldn't be feeling like this.) I am hoping she will now book a CT scan and I can find out what's going on.

B.

Well - I feel like I'm treading water.

Having got a private blood test which showed my tumour markers had risen again and are now "high". I got in to see my oncologist early. She booked CT scans. Yesterday, I went for results - nervous that this is it - going to be stage IV.. and they didn't have the results.

I waited all day for her to phone - by then I was exhausted and she didn't give much away and just said they need to do another test - as nothing showing yet except for my thyroid. (I have a multi-nodal goitre.) She said they need to do an US as my nodule had got bigger and mentioned the size but I thought it odd as the main nodule was bigger than what she said. One is flexible in size, usually about 3+ cm and the other 2 haven't changed the whole time I've had it were both about 0.9 mm.

I checked through my notes this morning and realised that my larger nodule was 3.7 cm in March so it cannot be the one she is referring to as having got bigger. Therefore one of the sub-centimeter nodules is now 2.6 or 2.8 cm. That's some rapid growth since March. They've never changed size before.

I still don't know why I have tertiary waves in my esophagus - the larger nodule will probably account for the hoarseness and sometimes spasms in my initial swallow which choke me. And I'm still in the woods with dodgy tumour markers and not knowing if my TNBC is going to be diagnosed metastatic - which is still looking likely. (3 or 4 rises in less than a year - well over 100% in the first increase.)

All the waiting and going from scan to scan is a horrible way to live.

The only positive was her agreeing to pressure my GP for treatment for my terrible arthritis which is leaving me without proper sleep and increasingly unable to walk.

I shall pull myself out of this mood and not feel guilty for having a bit of a dark day,

Just got the call that the scan is booked already for next week - that's urgent then. Letter arrived - biopsy too.

Barbed.