bladder cancer anxiety

[anxious_88]

hi,

i've suffered health anxiety for the last 3-4 years but have major exams coming up and it's all got far more out of control in the last few weeks so was looking for some support and reassurance.

i have ibs and it's been really really painful this week. have been taking fibrogel and mebeverine - sometimes helps but the mebeverine doesn't seem to be working and i find it really unreliable. i get really sharp localised ibs pain very low down on my stomach and can't get rid of the feeling that it's bladder cancer as i have had two UTIs in the last year. they both went away with antibiotics but i'm panicking as i can feel some very small lumps under the skin on the right side of my lower abdomen. they don't hurt but i'm obsessed and keep touching and pressing them. they move around when touched and aren't painful but sometimes correspond to where the ibs pain is. also i HATE ibs, not even because of the pain but because i am constantly thinking it is due to something else, in the last year bladder cancer in particular.

i don't have uti symptoms atm but ibs cramps are really hurting. is it normal for ibs pain to always be in the same place, lower right abdomen, and to feel quite sharp sometimes? do you have any other advice? i try to eat a lot of fibre but it's not always easy and the antispasmodics don't always help, which makes me really really panicky, as i start thinking it must be due to something else if it's not responding to the drugs.

any help would be great, really really stressed and scared at the moment, i'm in the house on my own all week, my family are away on holiday and i feel like i have no one to turn to. keep thinking i have bladder cancer, it's virtually the only thing i think about and can't stop the spiralling thoughts about cancer and death. any tips or advice would be great.

thanks

anxious_88

[Maj]

I was at the funeral of my mum's cousin last week and she had bladder cancer. Her symptoms were ENTIRELY different from yours. Please try not to worry about it because most of the time we imagine it to be all sorts then it very rarely is. I think if we were to poke and prod our bodies then we'd all find lumps n bumps!! And I've got more bumps than I need! Honestly, I know it's difficult but it sounds like it may be your ibs to blame.
Myra x

[MightyPC]

Anxious, I have experienced similiar problems since xmas, still ongoing with additional symptoms that I am told is HA. My bladder feels like ive drunk 6 pints and cannot empty it, It is also swollen around that area. I had a colonoscopy 3 weeks ago which was clear and I was told by the surgeon that IBS & bowel conditions can cause bladder upsets and problems.

[JaneC]

Hi anxious,

Is it possible you are overdoing the fibre? My IBS symptoms sometimes get worse if I eat too much wholemeal bread and I also need to be careful with veg, although current advice seems to be soluble fibre is good, insoluble isn't. I also take mebeverine and, when I need it, Fybogel, but still get flare-ups.

I'm also pretty sure it is not uncommon for people with IBS to also suffer from bladder probs. I certainly have both. Much more likely to be related to that than cancer. I've had the camera in my bladder thing and and it proved you can have symptoms without there being anything being physically wrong.

Hope you can get over this worry somehow x