Woman Who Thought She Was Suffering Indigestion For Two Years, Later Diagnosed With A Serious Disease

11Rushed to emergency

Zepeda’s husband Alexander Sweeny rushed her to emergency where she was put on painkillers and medication. Although the doctors learnt she was scheduled for a colonoscopy, they didn’t want to perform any scans on her because she was of reproductive age. The doctors were concerned that a CT scan could make her infertile and that the odds of her suffering a GI problem were too low to risk the scan and damage her reproductive health. 

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12Diagnosed with colorectal cancer stage 4

However the next day, Zepeda was asked to return for a partial colonoscopy and that was when doctors found a golf ball sized tumor which was the reason for her GI tract blockage and which also stopped the laxative from working earlier. Zepeda was then diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer and now considers herself extremely lucky to have gone and done the colonoscopy or else the doctor would have just written off her symptoms to IBS. 

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13The disturbing trend of active healthy people contracting colorectal cancer

Zepeda asked her oncologist how she could have contracted cancer. The most disturbing trend of colorectal cancer in young people is that they may seem otherwise healthy and active with good diet but it is ultimately diet and environmental factors that are causing a rise in the disease. It could also be the result of changing hygiene practices throwing people’s microbiomes out of order. 

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14Her treatment began with chemo

Zepeda was treated with radiation to shrink the tumor before surgery. When she finally went for surgery, doctors removed almost one and a half foot of her colon, gall bladder, appendix and lymph nodes. Even 75 percent of her liver was removed. They even harvested her eggs for future use in case she required it.

At the end of her six-month ordeal, that required chemo for the entire six month, and the major invasive surgery, she feels she saved her own life by going in the nick of time. At the end of her treatment, Zepeda who kept herself away from family and friends because of her chemo. 

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15She decided to celebrate with her husband

She is due for a second surgery to reverse the ileostomy that surrounds her small intestine and will then have scan every three months for two years to check if the tumor grows back again but she is optimistic. She wore a black gown for her last chemo session.

Zepeda has also learned one big lesson that there is no substitute for medical advice and taking symptoms seriously by seeking a diagnosis and treatment. Google doesn’t always give you the answer. 

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