Mom, 42, fighting for life after colon cancer discovered during ER visit

Ashley Mellen thought she was doing everything right for her health. fruits and vegetablesbuys organic, opts for grass-fed beef, and uses no toxic substances in house.

The stay-at-home mom of three says she’s so good she hasn’t taken painkillers, antibiotics, over-the-counter or prescription drugs since she was in her 20s.

Mellen went to an OB/GYN for pregnancy-related issues and found nothing to worry about. When everything suddenly changed in January 2022, she thought she was a healthy woman going about her life.

Emergency room visit reveals what doctors first thought was appendicitis colon cancer It spread silently over her body.

“I’m fighting for my life,” Mellen, 42, of Memphis, Tennessee, tells TODAY.com.

“The only way I was able to endure was the presence of God with me, my desire to see my children grow up, and my desire to be with my husband for many years. I wish.”

Colon cancer could be a ‘silent killer’

there were few Early symptoms of colorectal cancer.

Mellen and her family had just had a wonderful holiday season, and in December they noticed blood in their stools. She thought she had nothing to worry about, and since she had already scheduled her annual physical with her doctor, I thought she might mention it. failed to meet its promise.

In January, she started feeling pain towards her stomach and ribs. became.

Doctors told her she might have appendicitis, but a CT scan gave a more serious diagnosis.

“They took me into a small room and said, ‘You have a tumor in some place on your abdomen. You have cancer. We’re going to put you in the hospital,'” Mellen recalled, tearing up. shed.

“It was just a whirlwind. It’s not what you’re expecting at all.”

Colon cancer had already metastasized to her liver and was stage 4 at the time of diagnosis. This disease is sometimes called “”.silent killerThis is because patients show no symptoms before the disease progresses.

Colorectal cancer often does not cause symptoms until it grows or metastasizes, so tumors found early through screening may be easier to treat. American Cancer Society Notice.

Genetic Testing Provides Answers

Mellen says she had no reason to think of colon cancer. She had no family history of that, and had no pain or rectal bleeding until shortly before her diagnosis.Unrelated digestive problems early in her life led her to believe she was in her 20s. It was meant to have her colonoscopy.

But genetic testing provided important clues. It showed that Mellen has a genetic mutation. Familial adenomatous polyposis — The development of many polyps in the colon that can become cancerous.

The MUTYH gene normally helps prevent cancer, but mutations in this gene prevent it from functioning properly. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer CenterA person must inherit two MUTYH gene mutations (one from each parent) to develop polyposis.

Mellen says she inherited the gene mutation from parents she didn’t know about until she was diagnosed. I’m hoping to start getting endoscopies.

Surgery was not an option for Mellen. Until last November she had 20 rounds of chemotherapy, but it stopped working and the cancer started growing again. She is currently undergoing another type of chemotherapy and is looking into other treatment options, including clinical trials and immunotherapy.

The family set up a GoFundMe account to pay for childcare and medical expenses.

The mother was hospitalized for a month after her diagnosis and had to leave home for an additional two months to recover. She’s home now but she’s weaker than she used to be so I’m trying to gain her weight and energy.

“It was really hard,” she says. “I was used to taking care of things, planning and preparing everything myself, but suddenly I couldn’t do anything and had to rely on others for everything.”

Mellen recommends people get a colonoscopy, keep an eye on symptoms, and find another doctor if their current doctor dismisses concerns that something is wrong.

generally colon cancer screening Treatment with colonoscopies, stool tests, or other strategies should begin at age 45, advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Those with inflammatory bowel diseaseyouSuch as Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis. A personal or family history of colorectal cancer or colorectal polyps may warrant early testing, the agency notes.

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