# Sticky  IBS vs Ovarian Cancer



## Cherrie

Here is the link to the Mayo Clinic page describing some typical (early) symptoms of ovarian cancer:http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/ovarian-c...0293/DSECTION=2Some noticeable differences between typical symptoms are:Ovarian cancer symptoms include (1) urinary problems (urgency, burning, increased frequency, etc); (2) indigestion and nausea; (3) unexpected and often dramatic weight loss or gain that cannot be explained by diet, exercise, or meds changes; (4) dyspareunia; (5) fever or persistant fatigue; and (6) low back pain that cannot be explained by other reasons.If you still have concerns about whether it is OC instead of IBS, please do talk to your dr. about your concerns and get tested and/or diagnosed.Best wishes,Cherrie


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## Staci/GA

Does IBS ever have lower back pain, possibly gas?


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## peaches41

cherrie - I think it is a good idea to pin this - lots of women query whether they have ibs or ovarian cancer, and I'm sure it will help alleviate some anxiety.My symptoms were exactly the ones you describe, and you might emphasise that weight is mostly gained rather than lost, nearly all my fellow patients undergoing treatment with me reported huge weight gain.The test they need to ask for is a CA125.


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## TMM388

You may also have ovarian cysts. some people can have cysts as big as 9 cm that can cause pain and bloat as well. Sometimes they last several cycles and sometimes they need to be removed via laparscopy. You can schedule an ultrasound with your gyno to have a look and make a determination on next steps


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## SomethingInTheWay

I had these symptoms a few months ago and they were sort of severe. I was wondering if I can still have it. Right now the lower back pain and nausea went away. But they come back occasionally.


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## BQ

> I was wondering if I can still have it.


Have Ovarian cancer???If so and if you are seriously worried... check with your GYN.


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## lake211

I had an ovarian ultrasound and my doctor said that was all I needed. Now I don't know....should I have the test? My symptoms are too much like this.


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## Kathleen M.

Usually you do an ultrasound after you get a twig on the blood test (although there are a lot of other ovarian issues you can see on the ultrasound, not just cancer), or use the blood test to assess progress after you have seen it on the ultrasound, had it biopsied, and then are in treatment.I'd trust the ultrasound more than the blood test.


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## Dr Dani MD

Thank u Cherrie for sharing that link--the Mayo clinic is a great resource, altho still not a substitute for seeing your favourite doc in person. Also, with Ovarian cancer, family history of both ovarian and breast cancer is very important, as well as personal risk factors like early age of starting to menstruate (get your period), endometriosis, post menopausal estrogen use (i.e. HRT), never having been pregnant, lynch syndrome, are just a few of the ones your doctor will ask about.Hope this adds some helpful info!Dr. Dani


Cherrie said:


> Here is the link to the Mayo Clinic page describing some typical (early) symptoms of ovarian cancer:http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/ovarian-c...0293/DSECTION=2Some noticeable differences between typical symptoms are:Ovarian cancer symptoms include (1) urinary problems (urgency, burning, increased frequency, etc); (2) indigestion and nausea; (3) unexpected and often dramatic weight loss or gain that cannot be explained by diet, exercise, or meds changes; (4) dyspareunia; (5) fever or persistant fatigue; and (6) low back pain that cannot be explained by other reasons.If you still have concerns about whether it is OC instead of IBS, please do talk to your dr. about your concerns and get tested and/or diagnosed.Best wishes,Cherrie


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## DiamondRose

I am getting really bad pains in my stomach every day and they come and go. They are a completely different pain from what i get with IBS and i'm also losing a mass amount of weight despite the fact i eat loads, could i have OC? I'm nineteen years old.


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## BQ

Hon there is no way for us to tell that... Please go see your GYN.


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## DiamondRose

I would do, but doctors around my area aren't very good. They won't even give me a scan. I shall book an appointment though and see what they say. Thanks.


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## Catti_Bre

This was a helpful read. I've been dealing with IBS for a number of years now, and recently have been dealing with ovarian cysts as well. I am still in and out of doctors offices trying to find a solution to my health issues, my next appointment is coming up in two weeks and this article gave me some insight into what types of questions I should be asking. Over the past couple of weeks I've been noticing a few changes within my symptoms which relate to the article posted. I don't know what to think at the moment but I am certainly going to ask my doctor if there is a chance that I might have ovarian cancer, and hopefully get the testing done so I can either rule it out or find yet another "solution"Thanks again,Bre


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## Kathleen M.

I'm not sure ovarian cysts create a completely separate set of symptoms from ovarian cancer. But worth having the discussion with your doctor to make sure things like constant bloating that doesn't come and go (for example) is "just" the cysts.Unfortunately most body parts don't have a whole slew of ways of letting you know something is wrong, so the same symptom can mean a lot of things. Most of the time it is the most common, and not so life-threatening thing, but if symptoms are getting worse or changing over time that is when it makes sense to get the doctor involved just to be sure.


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## Catti_Bre

I completely understand what you mean, personally I'd rather bc safe than sorry. It would at least make me feel a bit better knowing for sure that I don't have ovarian cancer. Whether or not it is the cysts causing my bloating, I've been finding that I am waking up more often at night due to abdominal fullness, it becomes so full that it's almost painful, and puts a lot of pressure on my bladder as well.I guess I just have to wait and see what happens once I visit my doctor. It's exhausting though.


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## shygal110

Catti_Bre said:


> I completely understand what you mean, personally I'd rather bc safe than sorry. It would at least make me feel a bit better knowing for sure that I don't have ovarian cancer. Whether or not it is the cysts causing my bloating, I've been finding that I am waking up more often at night due to abdominal fullness, it becomes so full that it's almost painful, and puts a lot of pressure on my bladder as well.I guess I just have to wait and see what happens once I visit my doctor. It's exhausting though.


Just to let you all know. I have been fighting was i thought was IBS-C. My pap was normal last April so I didn't think it was gynecologic. I have been complaining to my gi doc of bloating and sever constipation for over a year. I've been taking lactulose and miralax. Finally I went to the ER and insisted on a CT scan. I have been diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian cancer.


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## jacobgordon

Ovarian cancer is cancer that starts in the ovaries. The ovaries are the female reproductive organs that produce eggs.

Ovarian cancer is the fifth most common cancer among women. It causes
more deaths than any other type of female reproductive cancer.

The cause is unknown.

Risk of developing ovarian cancer may be due to:




The fewer children a woman has and the later in life she gives birth, the higher her risk of ovarian cancer.



Certain gene problems (defects in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes) are responsible for a small number of ovarian cancer cases.



Women who have had breast cancer or have a family history of breast or ovarian cancer have an increased risk of ovarian cancer.




Fertility drugs probably do not increase the risk of ovarian cancer.



Older women are at highest risk of developing ovarian cancer. Most deaths from ovarian cancer occur in women age 55 and older. To know more visit ourwebsite www.avinandan.in


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## Dr. Dani

This is a really important issue, and is the reason why you should always have a full work-up for symptoms that seem like IBS, especially if they are new for you and you've had normal digestion most of your life and the bloating just starts out of the blue. Ovarian Cancer is a rare cause of bloating, but it is a possibility and needs to be investigated asap if there is concern, especially if you have a family history of breast, ovarian or colon cancers.

It can feel scary to get checked out, but probability wise, it's not likely to be cancer if you have abdominal bloating but always ask your doctor to give you peace of mind and to be proactive for your health


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## stephrick

I started having acid reflux 8 weeks ago, never had it before, had sore throat and bad taste, then the doc said I should loose weight, I weigh 11.5 stones and 5 ft 7, slightly overweight but have high blood pressure(heredity), I did diet and sit ups and felt I ruptured something cos I was having upper abdo pain, he perscirbed Omeperzole, I took it for 2 weeks but had to go to casualty with bloating and severe pain. I have had lower abdo pain for 3 weeks since, strong period pain and bloating and pain. have had bloods, thyriod, hormone, liver enzymes, and pancreas all normal. yet the pain is still there, sometimes at night i feel large in my lower right side, I feel like i am heavily pregnant. I wee alot and go from looose poo to normal, the pain moves. What is this, I have to go to the Docs for the results of Hpiloyi bacteria next week.


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## ibsad

I do worry that my IBS is actually ovarian cancer but since the bloating is not constant and seems related to food I'm more and more sure that it's IBS. Still very scary to have to consider that it might be the cause... my doctor does not take it seriously and won't pursue any testing for OC because I am under 30. I wish they'd just test for everything that it could be regardless of age.


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## Kathleen M.

Well a lot comes down to is there a chance of harm from the test (false positive rate meaning biopsies or other invasive tests) vs the chance of something.

If tests had no consequences at all then test test test until every test is run could make sense (although the stress of test after test with normal after normal result can make people's IBS much worse all by itself).

The problem at certain ages is do you harm 10, 100, 1000 or more healthy people (especially in screening where you may be testing a lot of people with no symptoms at all) to find the 1 in a million that might actually turn up having an extremely rare (at least for your age) condition.

Especially in cases where the symptoms are much more consistent with a very common disease/disorder.


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## jilliantodd

Symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) - abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, and/or diarrhea - are remarkably similar, which means that there is a real danger of an IBS misdiagnosis, when symptoms are actually caused by ovarian cancer.


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## Kathleen M.

They did a study comparing IBS vs Ovarian Cancer and there are some significant differences that can help tell them apart based on symptoms. Even beyond IBS regularly causes very obvious and obnoxious symptoms and cancer tends to be more subtle for a long time before something you can't ignore happens. Just because a symptom is very obvious and very obnoxious doesn't mean it must be the deadliest possible diagnosis. Often things that are not going to kill you are a lot harder to live with.

IBS bloating tends to come and go, you may be bloated only in the evening or only after meals and the amount you distend (if you distend at all) tends to be fairly similar week after week.

Ovarian Cancer Bloating generally once it starts it is mostly constant and only gets worse over time, especially with distension.

It is worrisome with IBS that you might miss something, but IBS is so common and other things so rare that most people are not really dying of something else and misdiagnosed.


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## jilliantodd

Symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) - abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, and/or diarrhea - are remarkably similar, which means that there is a real danger of an IBS misdiagnosis, when symptoms are actually caused by ovarian cancer.


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## pukka

I never worried about ovarian cancer until my last labs/ultrasound. The results were good except FSH was a bit low. I thought it just meant that I was entering menopause, but my doctor wanted me to have CA-125 test done. That was two months ago and i have been putting it off. I have been having a lot of problems lately and I decided to take the test today. I should of asked more questions, but I dismissed it because it was Dec 29th and I was focused on the holidays. Then Jan hit and I have been inundated with work andthen Feb...you know how it goes. . I do have IBS - C and it has been getting worse. God, I hope its nothing


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## laurabrane

It is fact that somewhere around 1.5 percent of all the women will develop ovarian cancer in their life. It is definitely malingnant and can cause to one or both of the women ovaries. I think regular check ups with the doctor will help in avoiding such diseases, and also keeping track of your regular menstruation is also important, to avoid further complications like infertility.


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## susanrkat

6 weeks ago I had. Total hysterectomy due to OC. It was probably the result of an endometrioma that was found on my ovary 20 some years ago. My IBS and acid reflux helped mask the true cause of my problem. It showed up on an ultrasound I had of my kidney. I was ignoring it because I had know about the endometrioma in that area for years. And did not want to face the possibility of OC.

. I am lucky it was found early (stage 1 grade 1) and was found only in the tumor.

Please go to your dr. It is scary - I know.


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