I've had piles for years and I'm beginning to worry

[imfineokay]

(Warning this is disgusting)

Hello all, it's been a long time since I've posted on here but I really need to get something off my chest and hopefully get some piece of mind before I go to the doctors tomorrow. As I said in the title I've had piles for about 3-4 years now and for the last year it's been getting a bit sore. I have the typical symptoms like bright blood on the toilet paper, itchiness (particularly in the evenings) and a sharp pain when I wipe. I've finally had enough and I'm going to get it checked most likely tomorrow, but smart me decided to google and a bunch of bowel cancer results turned up which very slightly made me nervous, I didn't read any more of the results knowing it would make me worse but does anyone think this sounds dangerous? Or does it sound like something that'll be resolved being more careful and using some ointment?
Thanks.

[nomorepanic]

Piles does not mean you have bowel cancer though.

I have had them for years and I don't have cancer.

You may need to change your toilet habits and diet if you have them a lot though.

[imfineokay]

I didn't think it did, I was just wondering why I've had them constantly for all this time. Guess I'll find out tomorrow but thanks that does help give me a pice of mind.

[nomorepanic]

It could be that you are straining too hard when going or like me you go a lot and it is loose.

Creams will help and in the past I have had suppositories to use as well.

Some people can get them banded and/or surgically removed as well

[MyNameIsTerry]

Mine started in my early twenties, I'm 41 now. They started because of my weight lifting, which is common due to the straining.

I still have them now, I can still feel them. I have minor flare ups as bowel movements change. What I found was in the earlier years I had much more problems with them and they just seemed to settle down later.

I used creams but what I found the best was the foam. You can only get it from a GP though as it's prescription only. That seemed to work better for me than things like nasty suppositories or the creams.

When they were painful & itchy, old fashioned salt water baths helped greatly.

[Annaboodle]

I've had them permanently since having my second daughter and they flare up often - basically any time I'm at all constipated and do "a difficult poo" as my daughter would say (I have kids and there seems to be no such thing as TMI any more sadly!). I think they don't actually go away if you've got them unless you have a small operation? I might have that wrong though. I've got them at the moment - same symptoms as you exactly.

I need to work more on my diet as I'm good and then slip with it. I can pretty much predict when I'll get them if I've been eating rubbish - in my case that's reverting to living on teas and coffees and snacks when I'm stressed. Then I'm constipated and then the piles. I figure it's nothing sinister as I've had them for years and also I can usually work out what I've done to set them off. I have IBS as well and that affects them - but again can usually trace that to food triggers or particularly bad bouts of anxiety.

Good luck at the doc. If you don't mind can you post to update? I haven't even tried creams and things yet. Just bumbled along living with it feeling gross.