I am 53 and for approx. 4yrs. I had been dealing with extreme hot flashes. I would get bright red (including the whites of my eyes) from head to toe. My OB/GYN said it was menopause and put me on HRT. I stopped taking after 9 mos. as I saw no change and was hearing and reading that this is not necessarily a good thing. Since Jan. 09 I was so fatigued all of the time, started losing weight (not trying) extremely low blood pressure along with rapid heart papitations and dizziness. Again, at annual exam all passed off as menopause - I just have an extreme case. By Aug.09 I was having extreme explosive diarrhea up to 5 or more times a day. By Oct. I had continuous severe swelling from abdomen to feet. I went to primary physician after work one morning in pain from swelling and was seen by a Dr. I had never seen. Dr. looked at swelling and immediately noticed I had a butterfly rash on face (I had this since May - also blamed on menopause) and thought outside the obvious and suspected Lupus. Ordered blood work - came back positive with a low count. Referred me to a Rheumatologist - he ordered blood work and a 24hr. urinalysis (5H1AA) to rule out diseases with similar symptoms of Lupus before doctoring for Lupus. These symptoms can also mimic IBS, Crohns disease and others. The urinalysis came back positive for a very rare and often
unheard of Carcinoid Cancer with the Carcinoid Syndrome. He referred me to an oncologist. After testing cancer was confirmed on Dec. 23,2009 with the primary in the small intestine (the illeum), cancer in my abdominal lymph nodes, 80% of liver. He heard a heart murmer and referred me to cardiologist. The cancer attacked the Tricuspid Valve. I had open heart surgery to replace this valve on Feb.23,2010, a pacemaker put in on March 02,2010. Recovered from that and am going in July 02, 2010 for a Therasphere procedure on liver. There is no cure for this cancer and is usually not found until the symptoms present themselves which usually means it has metastized. I would just like to bring awareness to the
situation that not all things are the obvious and we need to look outside the box. Not everything can be blamed on menopause - at this time I am living proof! Will be happy to answer any questions.
Zebra23