Anal cancer fear

[Healthanxietysuffere]

About a month ago, I got a virus that caused me to have diarrhea, combined with my normal anxiety diarrhea for a couple weeks. My bottom has been sore since then. I don't know if it's hemorrhoids or if I have anal cancer. I went to urgent Care a week or so ago and the nurse practitioner said she didn't feel anything, but she didn't look very well. When I check myself in the mirror, (I know this is gross), and I spend apart my butt I can see some purple looking lumpy things, but when I don't spread it apart, I can't see them. I'm having a little itching, some pressure and burning pain. So scared it's cancer, I don't think I've ever had anything like this before! I've had it at least a couple weeks.

[Fishmanpa]

I just went through a norovirus type bug. It's still kickin' my rear end (literally! :blush:) It's NOT cancer.

Positive thoughts

[wilky44]

So you have heamorroids. It's very common, and you've described the symptoms perfectly. Don't question the nurse, she looked. Doubting a professionals diagnosis is typical of HA

[Healthanxietysuffere]

Fishmanpa, what symptoms are you having? I'm also obsessively looking at it in a mirror and wondering if all that could be making it worse. I don't know what to do anymore, I've been so incredibly distracted by this damn HA, I can't get anything else done!

[nomorepanic]

piles!

[Fishmanpa]

Fishmanpa, what symptoms are you having? I'm also obsessively looking at it in a mirror and wondering if all that could be making it worse. I don't know what to do anymore, I've been so incredibly distracted by this damn HA, I can't get anything else done!

Ok first off... PLEASE don't self examine yourself like that! :ohmy: There have been a few very graphic descriptions of self examination recently and you just can't unsee that in your mind! :scared15:

Ok... you asked :D

A week and a half go on Wednesday it started with a very painful cramp in my lower left belly followed by what it's like to prep for a colonoscopy! I went to bed and awoke around 1am and this time it was both ends. The nausea was crippling. I was literally in bed, off and on consciousness for two days. By Saturday I was starting to feel better, had some chicken soup and was thinking, I'll be a little rough around the edges but back to work Monday.

I awoke Sunday around 2am and it started again. This time there's nothing left in me! I couldn't even walk! I was literally crawling form the bathroom to the bed every 30 minutes or so. By 11am it was just too much and I told my wife to call 911. Those who know me know that I had to be pretty bad off to do that! They ran bloodwork and did a CT scan because I was passing blood and due to my medical history (cancer survivor), they wanted to take a look. Anyway... long story short, I'll be Ok. The virus and subsequent effect severely irritated my colon. So in essence it was an acute case of inflammation and I was diagnosed diverticulosis (which I knew I had from a colonoscopy a couple of years ago). It never was an issue but due to the virus, things just escalated and there you go. They wanted me to stay in the hospital for a couple of days to give me the drugs but I refused due to insurance reasons.

I went back to work Tuesday and toughed my way through. I still feel like I got hit by a truck. I have nausea, cramps, headache and any food I eat seems to be taking the express route :wacko:

So over 10 days since it hit, I'm still recovering. And the hemmies? No doubt that's what's going on. I have a few that act up now and again.

Feel better soon...

Positive thoughts

[Healthanxietysuffere]

Thanks for the reaassurance. I, if course am still scared, but maybe a wee bit less now. I also just started paxil today, so am definitely having an off day! I'm supposed to see a GI doc on February 7th for this, so we will see, I guess. I hope I can hold myself together until then. I definitely need to quit the self examinations! I will try to. I Should never have googled.

---------- Post added at 20:18 ---------- Previous post was at 20:11 ----------

That sounds like an awful experience! I definitely wasn't as sick as that. I wish you a speedy road to recovery!

[Katie55]

Classic haemorrhoids. They sound exactly like mine- irritated by diarrhoea. I think it's all the wiping that makes them bigger and sore. When the diarrhoea stops they gradually calm down and go back inside their cave. I had enough of mine and had a procedure called THD (or something ) and that worked brilliantly. Don't worry, they're a nuisance and uncomfortable but harmless

[utrocket09]

Uts a hemorroid they take a while to heal

[Jenni855]

Definitely sounds like piles/hemmerhoids. They do take a while to shift unfortunately but are very common after bouts of diarrhoea/constipation.