Cyst - weight change/fatigue - Women's Health Message Board

emmasith · 06-22-2007, 05:49 AM

I've had symptoms of a cyst for 4 years but have been told time and again it's IBS/PCOS... but last month had an ultrasound revealing a "simple" cyst the size of an orange on my ovary.

I'm currently waiting to see a gyn, but was just wondering about weight change and fatigue as symptoms. About 8 months ago, I put on weight for no reason. In fact at that point I was excersising more, eating less, so it should have had the opposite effect. I put on about 3 lbs than what is my normal weight. And since about 5 months ago, the weight has suddenly disappeared. I now weigh a stone and a bit less than my normal weight and I'm worried because it seems this symptom is typical of ovarian cancer and not normal cysts. The same with fatigue. I go through phases of feeling extremely tired. Can anyone tell me if these symptoms are possible for a harmless cyst?

I'd also like to add: does anyone know the extent to which an ultrasound can detect how far advanced a cancer is? For example, my cyst has more than likely been there 4 yrs, is the size of an orange, and my left ovary is fine. What does this say about the likelyhood of cancer? If theoreticlly I had cancer, what stage would I be looking at?

I know these are questiojns that can only be answered by medics, but so far they have let me down consistently, and my own careful guesswork has been true. I'm just trying to get some reasoning to this whilst I'm waiting.

DQGal · 06-22-2007, 12:24 PM

I am not sure what I can tell you other than offer support! I wish you all the best and that you can get into your Gyn. soon! That is a fairly big cyst and needs to be watched further. Have you ever had a laparoscopy to determine the exact cause of your cysts and diagnose IBS/PCOS? If not that would maybe be something to discuss with your Dr. when you go to them. As for everything else, only a Dr. can determine cancer and all that. So I would say, get into your Dr. soon, get everything checked out (push them do to so if you feel they are brushing things off), and take it from there. Good luck and keep us posted.

ht0626 · 06-22-2007, 01:13 PM

I am very sorry to hear about your health problems. I had a cyst on my ovary that was also the size of an orange and it had to be surgically removed at that point, I do not recall feeling tired or any change in weight with it so ask your doctor for sure. My guess is that your doctor will have you remove that cyst as it is considered a problem at that size.. they did mine about a week later and I am sure they will do yours pretty quickly as well, when they do the surgery (laporoscopy) they are able to take pictures of the ovaries and other female organs so it should show anyhting abnormal (cancer cells) I would think at least-- ask your doctor for sure. I will try to do some research for you take care and let me know what happens!

Tiredofpain41 · 06-22-2007, 08:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by emmasith

I've had symptoms of a cyst for 4 years but have been told time and again it's IBS/PCOS... but last month had an ultrasound revealing a "simple" cyst the size of an orange on my ovary.

I'm currently waiting to see a gyn, but was just wondering about weight change and fatigue as symptoms. About 8 months ago, I put on weight for no reason. In fact at that point I was excersising more, eating less, so it should have had the opposite effect. I put on about 3 lbs than what is my normal weight. And since about 5 months ago, the weight has suddenly disappeared. I now weigh a stone and a bit less than my normal weight and I'm worried because it seems this symptom is typical of ovarian cancer and not normal cysts. The same with fatigue. I go through phases of feeling extremely tired. Can anyone tell me if these symptoms are possible for a harmless cyst?

I'd also like to add: does anyone know the extent to which an ultrasound can detect how far advanced a cancer is? For example, my cyst has more than likely been there 4 yrs, is the size of an orange, and my left ovary is fine. What does this say about the likelyhood of cancer? If theoreticlly I had cancer, what stage would I be looking at?

I know these are questiojns that can only be answered by medics, but so far they have let me down consistently, and my own careful guesswork has been true. I'm just trying to get some reasoning to this whilst I'm waiting.

I too had a cyst that was the size of an orange but I also had endometriosis and an enlarged uterus. Mine was a chocolate cyst that was attached to my right ovary. Due to the size and type of cyst I had, the cyst caused my tube to collapse and the cyst 'came to rest' on my pelvic floor.

In regards to cancer, I don't know. Definitely go to a gyn and have tests done for further exploring as soon as you can. A Laporscopy (sp?) may be done but due to the size of the cyst, the gyn may have to do a c-section so they can get the cyst out in one piece.
I don't want to scare you but that is a possibility. I had to have a c-section because of the size of my cyst and because I had to have some repair work done to my pelvic floor.

I know the waiting is nerve-racking but hang in there. Good Luck to you and keep us updated.

djl · 06-22-2007, 09:37 PM

Hi
I am so sorry for what you are going through. I too had the same problems. And yes I did gain weight, and my stomache realy swelled up bad.
I would recomemed to have a CA-125 done. It is a blood test for Ovarian Cancer. I had it done. I was normal.Unfortunately my OB didnt do the test but my Gastro doc did.
Then I would talk to your doc about a Laparoscopy and maybe even a CT Scan.