Concern about possible pancreatic cancer

Hello forum.

[[ERROR-TRANS]]Hace bastante que no escribo por aquí, eso sí, siempre uso un poco de mi tiempo para leer alguna que otra cosa y poder enriquecerme y tomar ejemplo de las experiencias de cada uno con esta enfermedad.

I have been a "DM2" patient for two and a half years.I put it in quotes because not even the doctors are clear about what that is, even two years later.

Since I started with this iI try to lead a healthy life, eat well and varied, exercise and stay away from anything that could harm me (except tobacco, I don't have the guts to quit haha).However, my physical condition has declined quite a bit.First it started with an involuntary weight loss that has left me at 70kg and that is on the days when I weigh the most, because normally I am around 67-68.Lately things have gotten worse, I have several intestinal problems and I feel tired half the day.

My doctors tell me with all the normality in the world that they do not know where my diabetes comes from, that I have no history or risk factors (I have never been overweight for example, I have always weighed 80-odd kg, at most 90kg) and that I am too young (23 years old) to have type 2.

I don't know about you, but I don't find that funny in the slightest and being an anxious person, it fills my head with horrible ideas, especially that mine is a misdiagnosed type 3c and that I have pancreatic cancer.

The problem is that every time I go to the endocrinologist I tell them about it and they sweep it under the rug telling me that the blood tests are fine and that I don't have to worry about anything.I just ask that if there is a more specific test that they do it for me, but it seems like I'm crazy for even suggesting it.

Have you ever had a worry like this?Can I do something?Do you know of any more specific test that could calm me down, at least get these ideas out of my head?

I hope you have a good day and that you take good care of yourselves.

A forum hug.

If you don't feel well, they would have to do more tests, I don't know if you have had celiac disease.

Pancreatic cancer gives other very clear symptoms.

It is not cancer, but you can ask for more immunodeficiency tests.

Hello @guns4bones

Thank you for telling all this with so much sincerity.It's obvious that you've been thinking about it for a while and that you're not writing out of gratuitous fear, but out of the very real feeling that something doesn't quite add up.And that, being 23 years old and living something like that, weighs a lot.

The first thing I want to tell you is that your concern is understandable.When you are diagnosed with something that not even the doctors themselves are clear about, when you do things “right”—eat better, move, take care of yourself—and yet your body is getting worse, it is normal for your head to start looking for answers.It is not weakness, nor exaggeration.It is trying to understand what is happening to you.

Unintentional weight loss, intestinal problems, and fatigue should not be dismissed with a simple “don't worry.”It doesn't automatically mean there's something serious, but it does mean you deserve a better explanation.Just because you ask for more tests does not make you a hypochondriac, it makes you someone who wants to clear up doubts and live more peacefully.

It is true that type 2 diabetes exists in young and not overweight people, but it is also true that there are other conditions that should be ruled out when the profile is not typical.Slow-onset autoimmune diabetes (LADA), genetic issues, associated digestive problems such as celiac disease or even absorption disorders... none of this is strange or unreasonable to raise, and even less so with the symptoms you describe.

Regarding the fear of pancreatic cancer, I tell you calmly and without downplaying what you feel: at your age and with normal blood tests, it is extremely unlikely.The problem is not that that thought has crossed your mind — that has happened to many of us — the problem is that no one is helping you close it with clear arguments and evidence that gives you peace of mind.

There are reasonable tests that can be ordered without drama: antibody studies to rule out autoimmune diabetes, celiac disease testing, a more in-depth digestive check-up, or even a simple abdominal ultrasound that often serves more to calm the mind than to find anything unusual.It is not about going “on the hunt for something”, it is about seeking coherence and peace of mind.

It's also important to say something that is sometimes forgotten: being an anxious person does not invalidate what you feel in your body.Many times, on the contrary, it makes you more attentive to signs that others would overlook.Balance lies in not letting anxiety rule, but also not in keeping quiet when something doesn't add up.

And if at any time you feel that they are not listening to you, changing your endocrinologist is not a drama or a betrayal.It's self-care.We all have the right to a professional who explains things to us, not just sends us home calmly.

You have done very well writing here.This forum exists just for that: to share doubts, fears and experiences without anyone looking at you strangely.You are not alone in this.

A big hug, and write when you need it.Here we continue.

Hello @guns4bones

As Fer comments, it could be a LADA, from what you say, your case is similar to how I started.

At 35 years old and with a high sugar level more or less punctually, they told me DM2, with a considerable weight loss (more than 60) and without controlling the levels, instead of tests, the option was higher doses of metformin, which caused gastric problems.In the end it turned out to be a LADA and now with insulin I have regained my weight without problems of any kind.

In my case we discovered it the hard way, but when I left the hospital, I stopped by my doctor to tell her and she shook her head, because apparently it was the first time she had encountered a LADA and she didn't see it.The same to your doctors they have not fallen.

Cheer up and here we go.

Hello, obviously you must follow medical criteria based on tests and analyzes that provide you with an accurate diagnosis.

However, I can give you a "photo" of my experience that may help you find some similarity with your personal situation, although, I insist, you should only consider medical criteria.Three and a half years ago I suffered from acute pancreatitis that kept me hospitalized for two weeks and almost took me away.In addition to pancreatitis, and as a result of this, I was diagnosed with DM3c, or secondary diabetes, so I need insulin daily since my pancreas stopped functioning practically completely.But in addition to this endocrine function (insulin production) I also lost the exocrine function, which facilitates the digestion and absorption of nutrients through the secretion of pancreatic enzymes.That is to say, I also need to take pills daily with every meal (the drug Kreon).

At first I suffered rapid weight loss, on the one hand in response to a total change in my eating habits that I had to adapt to my new condition as an insulin-dependent diabetic and, on the other, to malnutrition induced by a lack of digestive enzymes that was certified by a blood test.elastaseand that was not corrected until starting to take Kreon.

With the passage of time I have achieved, or at least that is what I pursue, a balance between food, weight and nutrition based all on a varied meal plan but with significant carbohydrate content and continuous daily exercise.I keep the HbA1c goal below 5 and as long as possible in a narrow range (from 70 to 140), which is now around 89-93%.

In the semi-annual tests that I undergo, they ask me for two specific markers for the possible development of cancer of the pancreas and other organs of the digestive system, identified as C.E.A.and CA 19.9 that are like "little goats" that something is not going as it should and that, thank God, remain at normal values ​​today.This is revealing of the existence or not of some pathology in the pancreas.

You are young and weighing seventy kilos it is unlikely that you suffer from DM2.However, some tests aimed at the digestive system can provide you with relevant information about your pancreas, although I can tell you that the pancreatitis that triggered the failure of my pancreas was an extremely painful process and if you have not had any episode of that kind, I do not think you are in the condition of DM3c.In any case, are you monitoring your blood glucose?because 3C diabetes strongly alters these levels.

Anyway, I hope it's nothing and if I can I can answer any questions you have, all you have to do is say it.

All the best!