Im a 27 yr old white male. Recently (last 3 weeks) I've been having difficulty swallowing, the area where my esophagus meets my stomach feels narrow and tender - on the inside that is, no palpable pain or mass. Strange thing is its worse in the morning. My gp has prescribed me losec to deal with it and scheduled an Upper Endoscopy.
I haven't lost any weight, my appetite is there but eating is a struggle or at least Im worried with every bite I take. Could this be an ulcer? I get a dull pain in my stomach frequently at nights, like a gnawing almost. Drinking citrus fruit juice is painful too. Hiatial hernia maybe?
Im a little scared to be honest, not being able to eat properly is scary and Im sure my anxiety is making it worse - I am constantly thinking about my stomach area. Does anyone have any suggestions? I've convinced myself its oesophageal cancer so am driving myself insane with worry.
Hi - You could have quite severe symptoms, and only have minor erosions (I did) Meds did nothing for me, which increased my fear. Eat bland stuff until the scope - try not to worry - You have no 'red flag' symptoms, and any digestive cancer at your age is very rare - less than 1% of gastric cancer cases, and very, very much less than that in just gerd or indigestion pain.
I was more worried because I am 50 ;-)
I can't tell you what your symptoms mean, but as someone who is guilty of getting all worked up over symptoms entirely too much herself, I can give you some practical advice! Stop googling symptoms for now. It's only feeding your anxiety.
You're already pursuing a course of action by seeing your doctor, and hopefully you'll get some answers soon that will set your mind at ease. In the meantime, here are some things to consider: aging is a risk factor for esophageal cancer, and you're only 27. Difficulty swallowing and stomach pain are both symptoms that could indicate any number of other conditions that are treatable, including acid reflux.
My doctor always tells me when I work myself up into a state of anxiety, "Quit looking for zebras when you hear hoofbeats." Hope you can get some peace of mind soon.
I can't tell you what your symptoms mean, but as someone who is guilty of getting all worked up over symptoms entirely too much herself, I can give you some practical advice! Stop googling symptoms for now. It's only feeding your anxiety.
You're already pursuing a course of action by seeing your doctor, and hopefully you'll get some answers soon that will set your mind at ease. In the meantime, here are some things to consider: aging is a risk factor for esophageal cancer, and you're only 27. Difficulty swallowing and stomach pain are both symptoms that could indicate any number of other conditions that are treatable, including acid reflux.
My doctor always tells me when I work myself up into a state of anxiety, "Quit looking for zebras when you hear hoofbeats." Hope you can get some peace of mind soon.
Totally agree with this reply, I have done the same many times and I end up in a right state and making myself even more ill.
Okay, my first hubby died from oesaphageal cancer. He started getting where food would get stuck in his throat/chest area. After a few weeks of this, he started to lose weight. His doctor said it was just a hiatal hernia, and put him on some meds. The meds didn't work, so they finally decided to do a scope, and that's when they found the tumor. He went from around 230 to 170 in about two months. He finally got to the point where water wouldn't even stay down. They did surgery and removed his esophagus, and he did well, until unfortunately it came back in his spine less than a year later. Your's sounds more like erosions or maybe a really bad case of reflux/Gerd. Hope you get answers soon.
Hope you can get some peace of mind soon.
