A woman has shared the “embarrassing” symptoms of a deadly disease she initially ignored before her life-changing diagnosis, urging others to “talk to your doctor”. Lindsey Jayn Piette from Ontario, Canada experienced problems like irregular bowel movements and bloating but did nothing about them.
Taking to social media service TikTok, the single mother said she put off seeking help for “too long” and was finally diagnosed with stage three colon cancer – also known as bowel cancer – aged 39.
In a video about her symptoms, Lindsey said: “Warning signs, I had cancer, that were missed.
Ask your doctor for a colonoscopy, even if you think you’re too young to worry.
Some of the symptoms included bloating, irregular bowel movements, abdominal pain and constipation.
“These topics are often embarrassing to talk about, but getting help can save your life,” Lindsey added.
In an earlier video, he recounted his symptoms and said: “Talk to your doctor and get tests if necessary. I put it off too long.
“The symptoms I ignored were actually stage three colon cancer.” These characters were:
- Irregular bowel movements
- Crazy bloating and gas and can’t figure out what’s causing it
- No bowel movement for 3-4 plus sometimes days
- Fatigue and lower back pain
- Very small amounts of blood on toilet paper from time to time
- Abdominal pains very often and painful bowel movements.
Lindsey was scheduled for a colonoscopy at age 35 because of a family history of the disease.
However, due to logistics, he was unable to attend his appointment and had to cancel.
Later, in April 2021, he finally underwent a colonoscopy, where doctors found a five-centimeter tumor.
She underwent intensive chemotherapy and radiation and was told the tumor was gone in January 2022.
However, in July 2023, he learned that the tumor had returned and he had to undergo surgery in August.
Fortunately, a year after the cancer has not returned, Lindsey said, “A year ago, my life was saved by major cancer surgery.”
In another video where she talked about the mental health side of her journey, she called it a “traumatic experience” and commented, “The one thing that’s almost harder than fighting cancer is dealing with the emotional aftermath of it and not having anyone to talk to. that makes it 100 times worse.”
Bowel cancer is the fourth most common type of cancer in the UK, with around 44,000 new diagnoses each year.
The NHS lists the symptoms of bowel cancer as follows:
- Changes in your poop, such as softer poop, diarrhea, or constipation that isn’t usual for you
- You have to poop more or less often than usual
- Blood in your poop, which may appear red or black
- Bleeding from the bottom
- You often feel like you have to poop, even if you just went to the toilet
- Stomach ache
- A lump in your stomach
- Swelling
- Weight loss without trying
- Feeling really tired for no reason.
If you notice signs of the disease, contact your general practitioner.
