terrified 10 yr old son may have cystic fibrosis

[Dobbiedoo]

I'm in bits :-(

Since birth, my 10 yr old son has had persistent loose bowels/diarreah. We had him seen by a paed/gastroenterologist age 2 and again age 6. Both times he was tested for ceiliac and general blood tests and the conclusion was simply "toddler diarreah" then "too much squash". The problem persisted but I didn't worry too much and assumed he'd grow out of it. However, age 10 it is embarrassing for him so I decided to revisit it.

I posted for advice on a parenting forum and someone replied that their daughter had a similar story and it turned out to be cystic fibrosis! I was horrified as I assumed it was a lung problem and he has no trouble in that department. However, I've discovered that some people with cf don't have lung problems and it just affects the pancreas not breaking down food, hence the diarreah.

My son is fit and healthy apart from the diarreah and has always been the correct weight and height for his age, is even a bit taller than average. If he has cf surely he'd have other problems by age 10, wouldn't he?? I'm terrified.

On the plus side I've stopped worrying about my own health overnight and feel guilty I wasted so much time over it when my son might be seriously ill :-(

[Serenity1990]

The question is who to trust on your child's health. Two doctors, with two decades of training between them and (given they're specialists) at least a few decades of experience between them, who have had the benefit of first hand examination, blood tests and probably other tests. Or someone on an Internet forum.

[RoseEve]

Oh my goodness if your child had CF he would have been diagnosed by now! In the US we do newborn blood tests that test for all kinds of diseases at birth. Do they do that where you live?

[Dobbiedoo]

no they didn't do newborn screening in the UK when he was born but they do now.

[Fishmanpa]

On the plus side I've stopped worrying about my own health overnight and feel guilty I wasted so much time over it when my son might be seriously ill :-(

H Ddoo,

Certainly I hope everything is fine with your son but from what you said, it certainly seems that it is apart from some loose bowels. If the boy was seriously ill, you'd know it, he would certainly be complaining about it and medical professionals would have found something by now don't you think?

I remember the threads on bowel cancer and such you posted a while back and you were in quite a state at the time. While it is a positive you've stopped worrying about bowel related issues and other health concerns about yourself, it appears you're projecting your anxiety to your child. Have a doctor check him out and when all is clear, start working on yourself Ok?

Positive thoughts