Over the past few months I've been having trouble with fresh blood (Bright Red) being down one side of my very wide and long stools in a straight full non broken line kind of like tomato sauce on a sausage/hot dog. When I clean my anus after passing stools I see bright red blood on the paper. During this time I had anal swelling and passed a lot of wind after each bowel motion but other than that had no problem apart from pain when passing stools.

Since then, from about last week, I've been having irritation in the lower right abdomen, a pain I have never previously had, it comes and goes and lasts for variable periods of time, sometimes a few hours, sometimes about half an hour, and varies in degrees of pain. Bowel Motions and eating do not seem to effect it. But If I go to sleep, when I wake up it always feels better, and most of the time I don't feel anything at all until a few hours after waking.

When the pain first came on I changed my diet to having a lot of fibre and fruit juices for a few days in place of what I normally had, the next time I passed stools they were much lighter, softer, and there was no blood or pain and generally I felt it was back to normal. However I still wanted to get things checked out due to the pain.

I made an appontment at my local surgery to be checked out and I was examined of which the doctor checked my stomach for swelling and did not find anything and prescribed me with irritable bowel syndrome, but told me if I persisted in having problems they would take a sample of my stool to get it checked out but it's nothing urgent but if I wanted to be on the safe side I should drop a stool in in a few days.

Since then I went back to my normal diet, and upon passing stools this evening I suffered from constipation, of which when I did pass stools, they were hard and round and smallish and after straining for a while to empty my bowel (I know I shouldn't, but I really needed to go!), I noticed blood on the fifth or sixth ball I passed?

Is this cancer? I'm guessing it might well be piles because the constipation and straining could have caused that, and when I did pass stools without straining on the last 2-3 occasions when they have not been thick and hard I have had no blood. I was thinking that because the stomach pain has only come on quite recentley it would be unlikely to be cancer as it would build up over time? Is this true?

Appreciate it if anyone could help.

Thanks.

Does the doc know you have blood in your stool? I am pretty sure I have IBS, but I have NEVER had blood. My doc says that if there is ever blood, tell her immediately, cause it could be a bigger problem. My mom had blood in her stool for a year (on and off) and her doctor (different one) told her it was just hemmoroids. Well, it wasn't! She was just diagnosed with rectal cancer. If I were you, I would go back to your doc & demand to see a gastrinologist as my mom did. Then, try to get a colonoscopy....

I will be seeing doctor soon anyway as will drop a stool sample in next time I empty my bowel and as soon as they get the results they're going to call me in to check how things are going and what they have found.

I've had problems with hemmoroids in the past and the bleeding does seems to be in similar ways, such as I only get it if I strain and I get pain, I read if it was cancer I would not get pain?

As I say, I'll be dropping the stool sample in soon, and I'll ask again to make sure they check out my anus for hemmoroids if I still have blood, and if they do, I'll see how it goes over a few days or so and eat lots of foods full of fibre and see what happens. If not I'll ask to see a specialist and a colonoscopy next week.

I'm only 19 though, so I would have thought the chances are quite small, but it's best to be safe.

Yes, with you being 19, the chances are small, but you are taking the right steps to get the answers. Good Luck!

You are doing the right things. Keep up with the juices and fiber foods. After about a month it will be a routine you will simply want to keep up. After all it very well may help and at worst it cannot hurt.