Symptoms of colorectal cancer in a woman diagnosed at age 42

Andria Devlin, 47, was shocked when she was diagnosed with Colorectal cancer 5 years ago. Early childhood educators had no risk factors or family history of illness. Like many, she postponed checking her symptoms when they appeared. Devlin, who lives in Lawrence, Kansas, shared her story with today.

Talking about this is not an easy topic, but it is very important.I think I’m dead because I don’t want to go to the doctor and talk to him, I shouldn’t die because of embarrassment Symptoms.. It took me a long time to get in and say something was wrong.

I was a person who always lived on the side of constipation, so irregular bowel movements were like my jam forever. I noticed in 2016 Mucous substances in my stool.. It was different, but I wasn’t worried.

Then I started to have intermittent bleeding with defecation. It was comparable to the hemorrhoids in my brain in connection with my constipation. I had no stomach problems, no weight loss, and no fatigue. All labs looked fine. Other than constipation and the bright red blood in the stool, there was no indication that the tumor was growing in the rectum.

I didn’t think much Colorectal cancer.. Why I? I am in my early 40s, active, exercising, eating well and not smoking. There were no risk factors or family history that made me think, “Oh, you probably have cancer.”

So it took too long to go to the doctor. I bleed every time I defecate, and it took me a while to get bored. I remember mentioning it to my OB who told me to check it out.

It was May 2016, but I didn’t go to the doctor until January 2017. She had a rectal exam and didn’t feel hemorrhoids, but she gave me a suppository to see if it helped. The bleeding slowed down, but it didn’t stop.

Then I Colon endoscopy.. Then I woke up and remember hearing the doctor say: It’s a pretty ugly organization. My dad died of esophageal cancer, so when someone says ugly tissue, I know what it looks like. There was a photo with a colonoscopy report, but it was certainly not a bright pink healthy and happy tissue to imagine what your interior would look like.

The doctor happened to call my child’s 15th birthday the next day and told me that the tissue was cancerous. The tumor was prominent and blocked 80-85% of my rectum. I was immediately sent to Lawrence Memorial Hospital Oncology.

A scan revealed that it was stage 4 colorectal cancer — it had spread beyond my rectum to both lungs. I was receiving chemotherapy within two weeks of learning the diagnosis. Ultimately, chemotherapy treated almost all cancers of my lungs and shrunk the tumors. Rectal resection was performed in August 2017.

However, there was a place in my right lung that didn’t get smaller, and that was the case. Subsequent scans showed that it grew only slightly.I had Stereotactic radiotherapy (SBRT) On the spot in February 2018 — 5 sessions in 5 days. It doesn’t move during this treatment — they shape your body, so you’re lying in a very specific position each time. I have two boys, so I liked thinking about “Star Wars” while the machine was doing that.

In January 2020, I passed another round of SBRT because there was a scan that revealed another spot in its right lung.

Today I am celebrating the fact that I am still alive. It’s pretty miraculous that a person with stage 4 colorectal cancer can say that in 5 years. I still do a clear scan.

Cancer has already affected our family, and when it happens, life is precious and there is a change because you don’t really recognize it until you have a life-changing diagnosis.

When I was first diagnosed, I thought, “You must see your top child graduate from high school.” So I’m just checking these boxes. The next checkbox is May. My son has graduated from high school, so he’s aiming for it. Continue to add checkboxes to the list, like a college graduation ceremony.

I just make a lot of memories and raise awareness. People don’t want to go to the doctor and say: “There is mucus in the poop. What’s wrong?” But people shouldn’t die in embarrassment.

If I could talk about my experience and it took one to the doctor before I went to the doctor, I did my job.

This interview has been edited and summarized for clarity.