Diagnosed with pneumonia - is there something underlying

[miggymoggy]

Hi
I'm a healthy 49 year old female with no ongoing health problems and I have never smoked.
After a high temperature, sweating, chills and aching all over, I was given a CT scan with contrast and diagnosed with pneumonia. MY CRP level was 217 and I was borderline sepsis. This was a real shock as I didn't have a cough. They treated me with IV and oral antibiotics and I am signed off.
I can't shake the fear this means I have underlying lung problem - worst case scenario the dreaded lung cancer! What if I got pneumonia because I have undiagnosed lung cancer?
Why would a normal healthy non smoker get pneumonia?
I went to GP today (3 weeks after diagnosis) and explained my fear. He said he couldn't categorically tell me its not lung cancer but it is highly unlikely. He said my CRP has come down to 4 which is incredible as pneumonia takes a while to clear and even he thought it would still be around 20. He also said my bloods were normal. He said if I had lung cancer he'd expect CRP of 30 or 40 and other bloods to be out.
I kept pushing him to tell me I definitely didn't have it but he said I would have to wait until follow up x-ray in a month, as it takes a while to clear. He tried to reassure me but I am in a state of panic.
Can normal, healthy non-smokers just get pneumonia without an underlying problem??????
Please help

[Fishmanpa]

They would have seen an issue with the scan and yes, even non-smokers can get pneumonia. Feel better soon! :)

Positive thoughts

[epistore]

My wife has had 3 pneumonias, never smoked in her life, and is only 36 years old.

[miggymoggy]

Thanks for your reponses. I really appreciate them.

I just worry in case the infection was hiding a tumour - I had a clear CT scan in January so at least if it is anything nasty it hasn't been there that long.

[ankietyjoe]

Pneumonia is almost always caused by a bacterial infection, not smoking. Smoking makes you more prone to respiratory infection.

Your connection with cancer is completely irrational.

You also can't force a Doctor to tell you that you don't have something they haven't tested you for. Him not telling you that you don't have it is a reflection of your irrational line of questioning him, not you actually having it.

You need to try and stop making a connection between you not smoking and thinking you therefore can't get pneumonia, because anybody can get it. I had it when I was five, and as far as I'm aware I wasn't smoking at that age.

[miggymoggy]

Thanks for your response. It really helps someone saying how irrational it is. xx

[lofwyr]

CT scans find any anomaly in the lung. I have clean lungs overall, but CTs for other things have found a couple very tiny benign nodules, anything big enough to cause pneumonia would be VERY obvious on a CT.

[Katie55]

A neighbour and a workmate both had bouts of pneumonia, both were healthy youngish non-smokers who were fit and healthy, normally. They both got better and there was no tumour causing it

[miggymoggy]

Is it normal when you are recovering from pneumonia (3.5 weeks on) to still get pain in chest and back?

[willieverbefree]

My niece ( never smoked) and a friend ( never smoked) got pneumonia - they both recovered years ago and are fine

[lofwyr]

Is it normal when you are recovering from pneumonia (3.5 weeks on) to still get pain in chest and back?
If you had a clean CT scan, there is literally nothing sinister is can be. A CT scan of the chest would absolutely detect anything serious. Your back could be out from coughing, or stress or any other reason.

But the CT scan rules out anything serious.

[miggymoggy]

The reason I am worrying is the GP mentioned on rare occasions, the infection can hide a tumour. Which is why I have to have a follow up x-ray in 6-8 weeks to ensure a. its clearing and b. there is nothing untoward underneath.

[Fishmanpa]

You're falling into the rabbit hole here. In the rabbit hole, it's hard to see the positives and when you do, your anxiety ignores them. Your doctor is practicing CYA medicine and is doing what he's supposed to be doing. If he hadn't ordered a follow up, you'd be concerned he's missing something and fobbing you off. It's a very common thought pattern here.

I'm afraid here's nothing that can be said other than to point the positives out. You've never smoked and are in good health (sans a common ailment that's being treated).

Positive thoughts

[miggymoggy]

Thanks for the responses xx

[MyNameIsTerry]

Is it normal when you are recovering from pneumonia (3.5 weeks on) to still get pain in chest and back?

Yes, even months on. The pain from pneumonia can be quite a surprise. And all the coughing means various delicate core muscles are getting overused.

When I had it it came to a head when I woke feeling like someone had smashed my ribs in. I couldn't get up out of bed. It added to my asthma so I needed oxygen and nebuliser treatments. My asthma was mild otherwise. Off I went in an ambulance.

Mine had rumbled on a bit due to a few things. But I was otherwise fit & healthy and shortly before that had walked home in the freezing cold one night after clubbing. A good 5 miles in the early hours. That's when it started for me.

An x ray showed it straight up, a patch.

My mum more recently had pneumonia. She's in her late seventies now. She also has asthma. She went from a bad cold into being unable to get out of a chair and walk around due to the pain. Again, off in an ambulance but at her age they are more cautious.

It took me over a month to recover from mine and even then I ended up with a low platelet count that floored me for another month or so.

Recovery may be quicker but it can take quite a bit out of you. As long as the person is getting better, the body is obviously healing. Doctors can keep an eye on things or be consulted if things aren't getting better.

In our cases having asthma just meant it was more complicated. It wasn't a contributory factor as to why we got pneumonia so please don't take this as a suggestion of an underlying lung issue.

[miggymoggy]

Now I have a sore throat with a tickly cough. Does that mean anything??? So scared.

[ankietyjoe]

Yes. It means you have a sore throat and tickly cough.