Hello all. I am a 37 (almost 38) year old female and I’ve been having some concerning symptoms. Very personal but back in May of this year I had symptoms of genital herpes. It was a very mild outbreak but it was my first and it prompted me to head to the Dr. it was confirmed although by the time I was in to see the dr it was almost all cleared up.i didn’t have to take Valtrex.
In the meantime I found out almost two years ago that I have HPV (high risk) after abnormal Pap smear. I had a biopsy which was fine so they advised I come in for my next pap in a year. I had that Pap smear this past July and once again it came back abnormal. Another biopsy which was also clear and so once again I return in another year for my Pap.
Now here is is where I have begun to worry. About a month and a half ago I started experience a burning sometimes tingling feeling with pain and when I say pain it is bearable and not excruciating. More like a pressure feeling. It started from my Vulva and reached back to my anus. When this first happened I assumed it was another outbreak of the herpes. I called my Dr and they prescribed Valtrex for me. I took the pills however these sensations have not gone away. And as my Dr pointed out if this was the herpes then I would not have pain and burning sensation for almost two months with no outbreak. This sensation is sometimes constant and at other times lets up a bit. Also I have noticed that I have had an itching on the skin around my anus. Not on the inside of my anus at all but more on the inner skin of my butt cheeks. (Sorry I know it’s graphic) I tried changing detergents to a hypoallergenic non scented, same with my soap and stopped wearing thongs as well as sleeping with underwear at night. Sometimes the feeling of fabric touching down there feels almost painful. None of these things have helped. I do have a skin tag and a hemorrhoid thy I’ve had since the birth of my daughter (10 years) the hemorrhoid pops out but at times I just push it back in and has never cause me pain.
I do at times get sharp pains that I will feel in my anus and they last for a few seconds and pass. I have not had any blood or discharge or thin stools. I went back to my ob gyn last week complaining and they tested for any infections which came back negative. Also she looked at my skin closely with her microscope and said that my skin looked perfectly healthy and normal.
I don’t know what this could possibly be. Google brought me to anal cancer and the itching and pain match and after reading about HPV and anal cancer I am so scared and worried. The strange thing is that this feeling is not just around my anus area but all the way up to my Vulva.
I met with my primary dr today who basically fobbed me off and took a look but no exam. She seems to think it’s the after effects of the herpes but none of my research can I find anybody dealing with this post herpes outbreak.
I do have an appt with my GI dr next Friday but in the meantime I just have this feeling of dread that it’s anal cancer and I have put it off for two months thinking it was other things.
I guess i said all of that to say, does this sound similar to what any of you have experienced? I keep thinking that if it is what I fear that it must have spread because I’ve put off the last two months when I could have caught it sooner.
Any thoughts?
Hi ,
Welcome to the forum, although I’m sorry that you’ve had to seek us out!
First of all can I say that Anal Cancer is still pretty rare, although as you can see there’s a few of us here. Secondly Dr Google is a dangerous place to go, having said that I went there (as many of us do!) & this is what alerted me to the fact that I may have AC. Thirdly you know your own body & you have an inkling that something’s not right so be persistent with your Dr’s, be that your OG or GP, keep pushing until you get definitive answers to what’s going on!
From research I’ve done & from others experiences quite a large portion of AC’s are HPV driven, but that’s not to say that because you’ve had a positive test for HPV that this is what you have but it is an added factor.
The symptom that took me to my GP was mainly an external skin tag that had suddenly slightly changed in shape & had bled when I caught it when cleaning myself after going to the loo, in hindsight after reading others experiences I did also have some itching but nothing major, I had no change in toilet habits etc., & was referred on the 2 week pathway by the wonderful GP I saw. I was seen by the lower colon team at my local hospital who thought it was possibly a polyp & internal ulcer but during surgery to repair the ulcer & removal of the skin tag/polyp they decided to biopsy instead & 7 days later I had my diagnosis. I was caught very early, have been treated & am 15 months post treatment with no evidence of disease (NED).
Just to add most information about AC especially SCC is that it’s a very slow growing cancer, having said that in your position I’d be pushing for at the very least an internal examination or referral to the correct Dr’s, in my case it was the lower colon team, who’ll hopefully be able to tell you there’s nothing to worry about.
We have a facility on the forum to (Missing Forum) just follow this link & click on +ask a question, although it can take a couple of days to get a reply.
I really hope you get some answers very soon & keep being persistent until you’re properly checked out & satisfied that your Dr’s have been thorough.
Nicola
Hi ,
That was something I didn’t mention in my reply when I had my biopsy the surgeon also performed a flexible sigmoidoscopy to check for anything abnormal further inside but that came back clear thankfully.
Yes good luck next week & please do post an update to let us know how you got on.
Nicola
Hi ,
It was explained to me that my flexible sigmoidoscopy was to check my bowel etc., & that test came back clear. I’ve never had a colonoscopy but do know that some people on this forum have had a tumour detected via a colonoscopy, this would depend I suppose on the location of the tumour. I’m not sure a Dr would give you a diagnosis on either examination/colonoscopy alone I think if anything was detected then it moves onto biopsy as I think this is the only way to give a definitive diagnosis as to if it is cancer, also there’s a couple of different kinds of AC, SCC being the most common therefore a diagnosis would be given of which ‘type’ it is.
I think I would make sure on Friday when you see your Dr that you air your thoughts thoroughly & honestly & speak about your concerns & anxieties that your symptoms are worrying you from the view of possible AC. This may prompt your Dr to do further tests.
Nicola
