Woman who lost 25 pounds without diet or exercise had colon cancer. - Insider

• Ashley Teague, present 30, experienced unexplained value loss, diarrhea, and bloody stool for months. 
• She said her doctors refused her colonoscopy requests, since she was young and looked healthy. 
• She had colon crab and Lynch syndrome, a familial information that raises the hazard of respective cancers.

Ashley Teague didn't cognize wherefore she started losing value successful outpouring 2019, and she didn't truly care. 

The twelvemonth anterior had been an exceedingly unsmooth 1 — her adjacent person died from a heart attack and her uncle was killed successful the enactment of work — and she'd enactment connected immoderate weight.

Perhaps, Teague thought, the vanishing pounds reflected her improved intelligence and carnal health. Never caput that she was moving precocious nights arsenic a bouncer and hadn't changed her fare oregon workout routine. 

"I was like, 'OK cool,'" said Teague, whose 6-foot-1 framework had grown to astir 275 pounds astatine its heaviest. "I wasn't adjacent paying attraction to like, 'Hey your docket is horrible, you hardly sleep, you devour similar crap.'" 

But astir a twelvemonth later, Teague, a freelance lensman and ma of 2 successful Indianapolis, started to worry. She was down 25 pounds, had suffered a terrible and unexplained broadside symptom portion moving a Super Bowl shoot, and everything she ate ran close done her. She had diarrhea up to 7 times a day. 

"I knew heavy down" thing was wrong, she said. 

But Teague, present 30, said it took six to 7 months of advocating for herself astatine the doctor's bureau to beryllium granted a colonoscopy — contempt her apt inheritance of Lynch syndrome, a familial information linked to a higher hazard of aggregate cancers, including colorectal cancer.

Once she yet underwent the procedure, Teague learned she had a tumor successful her colon the size of a baseball. She shared her communicative to rise consciousness of Lynch syndrome and the rising rates of colon crab successful young people, and to promote radical to talk up for themselves. 

"Your assemblage gives you signs earlier it shuts down," Teague said, "so perceive to it." 

Clinicians archetypal told her she looked steadfast and astir apt had IBS 

When Teague archetypal went to the doctor, she said the caregiver practitioner dismissed her value loss, pain, and diarrhea arsenic irritable bowel syndrome and gave her medication. A period later, Teague returned with the aforesaid roster of symptoms, along with bloody stool. 

But due to the fact that her humor enactment came backmost mean and, the caregiver said, she "looked healthy," her petition for colonoscopy was denied. "We bash not springiness colonoscopies to patients nether 48 years old," Teague said the caregiver told her. 

At consequent doctor's visits, Teague said she told the squad her mom, a kidney and bosom crab survivor, has Lynch syndrome. Teague had a 50% accidental of inheriting the mutation, which leaves women with a 40% to 60% beingness hazard of processing colon cancer, according to MD Anderson Cancer Center.  

But clinicians didn't trial her for the condition, she said, and conscionable told her to "lay disconnected spicy food" and alteration her fare since a CT scan hadn't detected immoderate problems.

It wasn't until Teague learned her begetter had precocious had cancerous polyps removed from his colon, and told her doctors that, that she was fast-tracked to a colonoscopy. "Suddenly, everyone was scrambling, 'We've got to get you scheduled, we've got to get you scheduled," Teague said.

When she learned the December 2020 process had so revealed cancer, Teague said, "I retrieve my satellite conscionable stopped. I didn't perceive anything, it was conscionable soundless and cold." 

Teague learned she had Lynch syndrome, which had a metallic lining

Teague underwent country to region much than 4 and a fractional feet of her five-foot colon and merge what was near with her tiny intestine. 

Ashley Teague successful the hospital. Ashley Teague

The surgeon besides recommended familial screening for Lynch syndrome, which Teague learned she has. Estimates suggest astir 1 successful 300 radical worldwide person the condition, but it's apt "woefully underdiagnosed," Dr. Matthew Yurgelun, manager of the Lynch Syndrome Center astatine Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, told Insider. 

For radical with Lynch syndrome, helium said, "there is simply a wealthiness of tools disposable that tin beryllium highly effectual astatine reducing cancer, but we request to cognize that that added hazard exists successful the archetypal place." 

According to Yale Medicine, radical who cognize they person Lynch syndrome typically statesman colon crab screenings successful their 20s and repetition them each twelvemonth oregon two. 

If Teague had been tested six years earlier erstwhile her ma was diagnosed, she thinks doctors would person caught the crab earlier and more, if not all, of her colon could person been spared. Without it, she tin lone tummy a repast oregon 2 a day, she has to usage the bath frequently, and mostly lone has escaped stools. But, she said, "I'll instrumentality that implicit having to alteration a colostomy container immoderate day." 

Teague's besides grateful, successful a way, that she has Lynch syndrome since cancers that make from it thin to beryllium diagnosed successful earlier stages — adjacent if the diligent doesn't cognize they person Lynch syndrome, Yurgelun said. 

Before operating, Teague's surgeon thought it was signifier 4 crab owed to the size of the tumor. But Teague said she aboriginal learned it was signifier 2. 

"Something that should person killed maine didn't due to the fact that I person Lynch syndrome," Teague said, adding that doctors told her she'd been surviving with the crab for implicit a year. 

Now, Teague, who has a GoFundMe page to enactment her aesculapian expenses, is considering a hysterectomy since she's besides astatine precocious hazard of uterine cancers. But first, she has to determine if she wants much kids. Her girls are present 10 and 6, and volition beryllium tested for Lynch erstwhile they crook 18. "If they person it, we'll commencement mounting up the preventive screenings," she said. "If not, they're bully to go." 

Bowel cancers are connected the emergence successful young people 

In the past 3 decades, research has consistently found rising rates of colon crab and related illnesses similar rectal crab among younger people.

People older than 50 are inactive astatine a greater hazard of processing colon crab overall. However, radical nether 50 are much often diagnosed with hard-to-treat, precocious forms of the disease.

Bowel cancers tin beryllium hard to diagnose due to the fact that the symptoms — specified arsenic abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea, value loss, and fatigue — are communal with ailments similar hemorrhoids, inflammatory bowel disease, oregon irritable bowel syndrome. 

"It is precise wide that signs and symptoms that mightiness bespeak colorectal crab successful those nether 50, and peculiarly rectal bleeding, should beryllium evaluated by a healthcare nonrecreational promptly and not dismissed arsenic 'only hemorrhoids' oregon 'normal,'" Dr. David Greenwald, a prof of medicine and gastroenterology astatine the Icahn School of Medicine astatine Mount Sinai, previously told Insider.

If caught early, colon crab is precise treatable, and the five-year comparative endurance complaint is astir 90% if the crab doesn't spread, according to the American Cancer Society.

"I person truthful galore ideas and plans I privation to get to advocating, I consciousness a small discouraged successful this large aged world, volition my dependable truly beryllium the one?" Teague said. "But idiosyncratic needs to" promote clinicians to instrumentality household history, aesculapian history, and symptoms into account, and not conscionable disregard patients owed to their age, she said. 

Getting screened, Teague said, astatine the slightest tin springiness radical "peace of mind."