A woman has courageously shared her journey with bowel cancer by blogging about her experiences.
Known as heyheatherbeth on TikTok, she is utilising her online platform to create video blogs about her cancer journey. After being diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer, she wants to raise awareness of the common symptoms people should look out for.
She revealed that she experienced two main symptoms before her diagnosis and recently discussed them in a video, urging people to monitor their health. Although changes in bowel habits are a key symptom to watch out for, she didn’t experience this and said everything seemed quite “normal” in this regard.
Discussing fatigue, she stated: “Now this I definitely had. I was absolutely exhausted for about five to six months before I ended up in A&E. But the next common symptom is unexpected weight loss, so when you’re losing weight but you’ve perhaps not changed your activity level, or you’re not on a particular diet intended to lose weight.
“I had lost about a stone in weight but, again, this was over a period of about five or six months so it was noticeable, but it wasn’t drastic. So, again, I sort of didn’t really put the two and two together and think this might be a symptom of colon cancer.”
She also noted a common sign is bloating, which she occasionally felt after eating. As this is a fairly normal experience, she acknowledged that back then, she didn’t think much of it.
Discussing her experiences with fatigue, she mentioned feeling a sudden “wave of tiredness” after meals, attributing some of the tiredness and dizziness to her anaemia. The informative video has since garnered hundreds of views, with viewers expressing their gratitude for her sharing such vital information.
What are the symptoms of bowel cancer?
When it comes to bowel cancer, there are additional signs and symptoms to be alert to. The NHS outlines several pivotal symptoms associated with bowel cancer, which include:
- Changes in your poo, like having softer poo, diarrhoea or constipation that is unusual for you
- Feeling the need to poo more or less often than usual for you
- Blood in your poo, which may look red or black
- Bleeding from your bottom
- Often feeling like you need to poo, even if you’ve just been to the toilet
- Tummy pain
- A lump in your tummy
- Bloating
- Losing weight without trying
- Feeling very tired for no reason
It’s important to understand that these symptoms don’t necessarily mean you have bowel cancer. Nevertheless, if you notice any changes in your body or health that concern you, it’s crucial to contact your GP for guidance.