Jakarta –
Being diagnosed with colon cancer was like nothing Carly Barrett had ever imagined. His very young age made him feel that the condition he was suffering from was not a sign of cancer.
It’s just that he continues to experience complaint after complaint. Starting from bloody stool, stomachache, weight loss to a strange sensation in the stomach. When he looked up the warning signs online, he thought they were caused by hemorrhoids, ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel syndrome, or Crohn’s disease.
When she consulted a gynecologist, the doctor urged her to see a gastroenterologist. However, after seeing an internal medicine doctor, it was said that the symptoms he experienced were not serious and dangerous.
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“I was 24. I was too young. Cancer doesn’t happen to people this age,” Barrett, who is now 28 and teaches 4th grade in Louisville, Kentucky, told TODAY.
Barrett’s diagnosis in June 2019 came before she could see a doctor and her symptoms worsened. He had just returned from a holiday in Europe when he felt severe stomach pain on a flight from Spain to the US.
A CT scan and biopsy showed stage 3 colon cancer.
Barrett underwent surgery with doctors removing the large tumor and his stomach. One of her ovaries was also removed.
A month later, before starting chemotherapy that could cause premature menopause, Barrett underwent egg retrieval with one remaining egg to give her the chance to have children.
That first chemotherapy failed, with colon cancer metastasizing to his liver. Now, it is at level 4.
Chemotherapy did not work for him, but immunotherapy did and he is now in remission.
“Mentally, I’m still trying to get back to normal, but I don’t think I’ll ever be able to. I’m starting to get used to this new normal,” he said. .
(kna/kna)
2024-10-06 01:11:46
#Biography #woman #stage #colon #cancer #age #knowledge #symptoms
