Worried I've got cancer and no one takes me seriously

[Blondebarbie]

I am a 31 year old woman and I'm worried I have cancer. I can feel a lump in my lower left abdomen. I have lower back pain a lot but I did give birth 9 months ago, which could be related to being pregnant?! I am worried about the lump I feel but my doctor won't take me seriously because I have anxiety problems. I already know every time I go to the doctors he is thinking "here we go again" I haven't been in months, but the couple of times I did go, I cried. And was very scared and upset. All turned out for no reason. So now he just thinks I'm an idiot and I can tell by the way he looks and speaks to me. I already know he will fob me off if I try and tell him I'm worried. I don't know what to do. I'm quite thin so I don't know if that makes any difference but I don't have the lumps on the right side. Only the left. No blood in stools. Has anyone else had this and it turned out to be ok? Do I need a colonoscopy?

[Toaster]

Doctors always take everyone seriously. Regardless of anxiety. My last doctor was annoyed to see me. Every time. He blew me off so many times, and each time there was nothing wrong. But then there was this one time where I had legitimate symptoms and he took it very seriously.

Doctors don't just listen to your symptoms and make decisions. They take into account your vitals. They watch how you walk in. They pay attention to how you interact with them. They take all symptoms as a whole to make decisions.

I would think if you felt a lump and it was digestive cancer of any sort, it would be advanced enough for your doctor to notice something wrong.

[Catherine S]

Sorry, are you saying you haven't been to your doctor about the abdomen lump because you're nervous? Or you've been and was fobbed off?

The lower back pain could be explained with late stage pregnancy and giving birth, because I can still remember how painful my lower back was after I had my daughter, if I bent over I couldn't straighten up again without alot of pain, and it took best part of a year to ease off. But even though the lump you can feel is probably nothing, try and get the courage to go to your doctor and ask about it, just for peace of mind. Don't let your nerves stop you from getting it checked, it's about your health and not the doctors.

ISB x

[Thelegend27]

My father has alot of lumps in his abdomen, his are hernias, so yours could also be that. I lump isn't always cancer, in fact lumps are rarely cancer, and the ones that are cancer are pretty obvious that they are something more than just a lump. I have lumps in my calf muscle but ive had them for years and i used to skate so they are probably hernias as well. I am not a doctor and i haven't seen your lump, so if you think its worth seeing a doctor for by all means do so. Any time someone gets a lump they should have it evaluated just to rule out the slim vhance of it being something serious and also to get a peace in mind.

[beatroon]

Hi there - it's awful to feel so distressed about something like this, and I really understand how you feel. I want to say I second what Toaster has said - doctors take *everybody* seriously. They can't afford not to - it's their livelihood and vocation. Being a doctor takes years and years of training, through which they build up an enormous amount of tacit knowledge, as well as the scientific learning they rely on. I am positive that if there were anything to worry about, they would already have checked your problem out.

[ErinKC]

I know exactly how you feel. I alway felt self conscious going to the doctor after I went a few times with anxiety, cried, etc... but two things: (1) anxiety is a real thing that should itself be taken seriously by doctors. Primary care doctors can prescribe anxiety medication, so they shouldn't be writing you off. Your doctor probably isn't as dismissive as you or I imagine. It's their job to see people with medical concerns, even if those concerns are born of anxiety. (2) What others have said - when you see a doctor they are looking at the full clinical picture. They are trained to see and analyze the full picture, and will do so every time someone comes in, even if they have anxiety.