My 13 year old brother

[vanessa]

Hi everyone,
I have a brother named Matthew who is 13 years old and most likely has Chron's disease. Over the years, he has experienced extreme weight loss, has a very hard time using the restroom, and has had blood in his bowel. The doctors say that there is more inflammation in the intestines than usual. They say he has it completely all around and for now he needs to be on the IBD diet. The scary part is he's been getting all this testing done for colon cancer. The doctors fear that it could be a little serious than Chron's. We will receive the results next week and are VERY worried. Could this be a severe Chron's disease? Or does it sound like more?

Please, anyone who has or knows anyone with Chrons or has got this testing done.. let me know whatever you know. We are clueless.

 

[CharBarSprStar]

Hi Vanessa!
I'm sorry that your brother is going through this. I can say that I had all of those exact symptoms when I was diagnosed with moderate Crohn's in 1998. I've also had about every test that you can have done done to me lol, so any specific ones you are nervous about?

 

[vanessa]

They say he has stage 3 of IBD. We are basically just fearing that it could be colon cancer. The doctors told us there is a possibility.

 

[CharBarSprStar]

I know this is a very stressful and scary time for you and your family...but stay strong, and keep your spirits up. One of the best things for someone going through all the tests and medicines is having strong family and friends. I hope that they can get everything on the right track with medication and/or diet! <3

 

[vanessa]

Thank you. I truly appreciate it. God bless

 

[CharBarSprStar]

You're most welcome! I thought about it, and the only test I've ever had done where they test for cancer is an endoscopy or colonoscopy where they've taken a biopsy (cell sample). These tests you are usually under anesthesia (in my case, not totally sure if all hospitals are the same with their tests) so you don't feel a thing...a little sore afterwards but not bad.

If you have any more questions please feel free to message me!

 

[Keepingfaith]

Welcome to the forum! :ghug:

Sorry your brother is having GI issues. I hope he doesn't have Crohn's but if he does, he can start treatment to help him get the flare under control. Severe weight loss is a common symptom of an IBD, not just cancer so don't get too worried. There are a lot of supportive people on the forum who can answer your questions!

There is no way to tell if he has severe Crohn's, based just on symptoms. How do they know he has Crohn's 'all the way around'? Has he had the pill cam? Sorry, I've never heard of IBD being diagnosed in stages. What the GI probably means is that his tests indicate he has Crohn's throughout his colon/small bowel. He probably isn't getting tested for colon cancer in particular, they are probably doing a colonoscopy, which is used to search for colon cancer as well as MULTIPLE other diseases & conditions. Has he had a colonoscopy to confirm Crohn's? I don't understand you post you said he has Crohn's disease all around but he isn't diagnosed :sign0085: Does he have Crohn's or is he still undergoing testing? Crohn's can cause blood in stools but if it is a lot of blood, it could be Ulcerative Colitis, another inflammatory bowel disease. Ulcerative Colitis is like Crohn's, but it only affects the colon. Crohn's can affect anywhere from you rmouth to your anus. Crohn's is very rarely a death sentence & when it is treated, the disease can go into remission, although it may take time.

I am 15 & have been dealing with this for quite some time so if you have any questions, or your brother wants to talk someone around his age with this condition, feel free to message me! Not many people like to talk about this disease but it is becoming more and more common, unfortunately. No question is ever 'too gross' on this forum. We have Crohn's for crying out loud :lol2:

 

[vanessa]

Thanks for your reply keepingfaith. Honestly, I am really confused myself. They know for a fact there is SEVERE inflammation in his intestines. We did several testing. We will find out for sure if it is Chron's or not hopefully by Friday. The doctors say there are 90% it is Chron's though. The symptoms of Chron's are identical to his symptoms.

 

[David]

Hi Vanessa,

Based upon what you've said, the statistical probability that your brother has colon cancer is EXTREMELY low. It's not something I would worry about at present. However, he possibly does have severe Crohn's Disease which IS serious. And we're here to support you, your brother and your family in any way we can

*hugs*

 

[Catherine]

When Sarah had she colonscopy in January, gi also want to ruleout couple two of nasty (cancer) before starting treatment. He also told us straight after the colonscopy it look like crohns to him.

The cancer risk is very very small.

 

[Sheena]

Vanessa
My son was 13 when he was diagnosed after years of suffering, I can't remember a time between the ages of 6 and 13 when he didn't have a tummy ache or spend lots of time on the toilet, the blood started when he was around 8-9 ish and the doctor was no good at all (asking is he happy, does he have friends type of questions)! It wasn't until he was so ill and on the toilet night and day, missing school and heavy bleeding that the doctor put a request in for him to see a specialist, he then got so ill and when nothing was happening with regards to getting into the specialist, I called the clinic they advised me to get him admitted to Hospital, so in tears I called my Doctor to get her to do the paperwork to get him admitted! Best thing I ever did....by then my sister had made her own assumption that it was Crohns and the Doctor in the Hospital immediately thought the same, after a week in Hospital (he was 35 kilos the day he was admitted at 13 years of age) and lots of tests they came back with a diagnosis of Ulceractive Colitis, but within weeks that diagnosis was changed to Crohns but treatment was the same anyway. He was put on steroids and Imral, it took about 4 months to see improvements but within 2 weeks the pain was gone...he's now been on Remicade for about 3.5 yrs and was 17 last week, and doing so well. Apart from the toilet issues you would never know he had Crohns. I hope my story gives you some hope and for us there was light at the end of the tunnel! We are British but live in Norway and I cannot fault the exceptional care my son gets here from our local Hospital. I hope it goes well for your brother, keep loving and supporting him. x

 

[DustyKat]

Hi vanessa,

I'm so sorry to hear about your brother...:hug:...what a warm and compassionate sister you are, you must have a lovely relationship with him.

The symptoms you are describing do fit IBD and with the inflammation aspect of things probably more so than cancer.

The thing to remember is diagnosing is a process of elimination. They can't look at your brother and say he positively has something without running tests first and that is how they eliminate other possibilities along the way. Many of the tests they run for bowel cancer is no different to that of IBD...scans, imaging, scoping etc. I know it's easier said than done but try not to worry as cancer is something they need to look for before it can be eliminated and it is something that was certainly thrown into the mix with my two.

Dusty. xxx

 

[vanessa]

Wow thank you for all the replies. I read it all out loud to my mom and each one of you helped us a lot in your own way with your stories and advice. Thanks again. God bless you all