I'm new to this group, and just wondered if anyone might have had similar/relevant experiences to my own. I started getting indigestion symptoms a week ago, and didn't think anything of it at first, but after 3 days with no sign of it going away, I started to worry, whether it's a symptom of cancer (stomach or oesophagal). I went to my gp to voice these worries, but was told that "because I'm not 55" (I'm 52) he wasn't able to send me straightaway for a gastroscopy. Instead, I was prescribed omezaprole (20mg) for 28 days. The dr told me that he would refer me "if the indigestion returns after I've finished the medication". I'd never heard of omezaprole and am not sure why I've been prescribed it at this stage, so I looked it up on the internet. I'm now really worried that it could mask the symptoms of a serious illness like cancer and lose me precious time for getting my condition further investigated.
The indigestion symptoms I felt at the start are best described as "constant low level discomfort with occasional burping". I have rarely suffered from indigestion in the past and it has certainly never gone on for days.
Right now, I'm feeling nauseous and not sure whether it's a side effect of the medicine or down to the stress and anxiety I'm feeling. I'm sick with worry and planning to return to the gp on Monday and insist that I'm referred for a gastroscopy straightaway.
I'd be really grateful to hear from anyone with similar experience to my own
Omeprazole is what's called a PPI (Proton Pump Inhibitor), basically it turns off the little acid producing pump cells in your Stomach, here's the leaflet on the matter :
Your Doctor has prescribed this medicine for Gastritis (as it certainly sounds like you are suffering from Gastritis), this is possibly just a spontaneous eruption or it is caused by an overgrowth of a bacterium called H.pylori :
Hi Jane, firstly don't stress yourself out (I did and it just made thing worse!) I was put on omeprazole for a similar problem about 6 years ago and still take it while being advised to by the doctor. Have you had a weight gain recently as this apparently can cause these symptoms, if not try not to panic I am sure if your doctor thought it was serious he would have referred you straight away. Good luck
Give it time to work. You don't want to rush into an invasive procedure. I try not to scare people with this story but my uncle who had angina went into cardiac arrest during his and died. I later told my GP about it and he said that one of the partners at his last practice suffered the same fate. It is said to be a 1 in 2000 chance.
I've been taking omezaprole or other PPI's since 2001 and they mostly help.
Look up functional Indigestion and you will see your symptoms and more. I've had it for most of my life as well as two duodenal ulcers.
In the first three days did you take anything for it? I find that Bisodal tablets are the most effective of the over the counter remidies. You can back up the
Thanks for yr replies, I also suffer from health anxiety which doesn't help! I still have the indigestion and burping, although not as uncomfortable (I presume due to the medicine). I haven't had a weight gain, have been the same for years, and have never suffered digestive/stomach problems before. The leaflets are useful and it helps to hear from others who've been through the same. Will continue to monitor and decide what to do on Monday!
Jane: When you go back to your GP ask if a Barium Swallow X-Ray would be good enough for a diagnosis as opposed to an endoscopy. It shows a lot but does not give the option for taking samples and Helicobactor Pyroli can be diagnosed by other means.
Try not to worry about it (but do talk to your GP if need be), as you yourself say your weight is constant, if it were serious you'd be well sickened, losing Kgs a week etc etc
Thanks derek76 for yr advice. I will try to give the medicine a chance to work, keep calm and not to constantly assume the worst (goes against the grain with me though!). And yes benny blanco, there don't seem to be any other symptoms at the moment. Will continue to monitor and see GP as soon as I feel I need to.
I once phoned a consultans secretary when I was waiting for an initial appointment long in the future. I told her I was in pain and felt that I should be seen sooner.
She got me an appointment for the next week.
The registrar welcomed me with. "So you think you have cancer"
I said that I did not think that and did know what it was but that I did not think that it should go uninvestigated for months.
Of course the investigations did not find anything really serious apart from worsening diverticulitis and again I was told that my other symptoms were caused by hiatal hernia and functional indigestion.
Jane, I had very similar worries to you. I have constant low level pain on the left hand side. However, I have had 2 gastroscopies now, one on ppis and one off them. Both have come back as my stomach being fine. The last one was done yesterday. The ward was full of people terrified they have cancer. None if them did. I too googled about ppis masking cancer, it's terrifying when you start to convince yourself that you have it. All I can say is my doc told me that pain wasn't one of the symptoms he would look for. Not all that comforting when you're scared, but true nonetheless. Also, stomach cancer is rare. You are far more likely to have a touch of gastritis. If you want to get ahead of the queue for a gastroscopy then maybe a little lying will help. I think problems swallowing warrants a two week referral ( if you live in the UK). It might be worth saying that if you want a quick referral.
Just to put things in perspective though, I have terrible trouble swallowing, food gets stuck, I have had this problem for 6 months now, and yesterday's gastroscopy showed that my oesophagus was normal. Not everything is cancer, in fact it rarely is. Doesn't stop the worry though, especially when you consult Dr Google.
Good luck with your GP. Hopefully you will get a quick referral. If you do go down the two week route, then you need to stop your ppis two weeks before the gastroscopy as they can alter the results of the H Pylori test. If you are still worrying, please be in touch, I completely understand where you are coming from
Thanks for your kind words and for sharing your experience Stella, it's good that your gastroscopys were clear. I'm feeling a little more relaxed now, concentrate on modifying my diet to avoid acidy/spicy/fatty/processed stuff. Will continue taking omezaprole and monitor symptoms before another visit to the GP and will try to give Google a wide berth for the time being!!
indigestion symptoms Jane are very very very common and if thats your only symptom don't worry, in fact I wouldn't at this point be asking for any tests. Have you had a gastroscopy before!!! there not nice and carry risks and can only see the stomach and the first part of your intestines, so theres your bowls etc that are off limits anyway. omezaprole is very very commonly prescribed and yes it does have side effects and if taken for long periods (over six months) can be a swine to come off of, but thats another story. I haven't read all the replies but it does sound as if you MAY have the start of an ulcer, dont panic I'm afraid you're at that age when our bodies can start playing up a little. And lets put this in some sort of light, what if everyone who had indigestion symptoms was sent for a gastroscopy!!! Sometime to wait and see what occurs in the next month or 3 is the prudent option. I know its not what you wanted to hear but maybe it'll settle you a bit. Just monitor the situation.
You are probably right that coming of omezaprole presents problems. If I stop for mor than two days I get a lot of acid pain. I try usually to take it just every second day.
A doctor I used to have had taken it for eight years. He said that he only stops taking it when he goes to 'Mucky' countries on holiday.
Then he wants to maintain his somach acid to prevent tummy bugs. During that time he takes Gaviscon. We used to go to mucky countries and I tried it but Gaviscn does not control it for me.
Correct Derek, you have to 'wean' yourself off so to speak slowly or you do get acid BAD. In fact it can be worse than the original symptom you started taking for. I have to take it for around one year every few years and start to come off by taking 20s instead of 40s and then like you 20s every couple of days and then extend to 3 days and so on. It takes a good 4 weeks to come off. Gaviscon is as much use as a chocolate fireguard agreed. I could drink a bottle and still have acid. There are other options to Omezaprole but most GP just op for it, must be cheap. lol.
I tried all the other PPI's and they did nothing for me. Now that generic versions are prescribed I sometimes wonder if the Indian and Slovenian versions are the same.
I recently queeried the side effects of a drug with the British company named on the packaging. The reply came from an Indian company. Surely the country of origin should be on the packaging?
Thanks guys for your comments - it always helps to hear the experience of others to put things in perspective. Although I still feel a little nauseous, there don't seem to be any other symtoms ATM so I've decided to stay with the omezaprole until the 28 days is up and monitor the situation.
Hi Derek, no. It's absolutely killing me even to swallow water today, plus my stomach feels like it there's a knitting needle stuck in it on the left hand side. This is when I get paranoid despite the gastroscopy... Have a barium swallow booked for next Friday so I'm really hoping it shows something. I would like to get this treated so I can get back to feeling vaguely normal!
Can I just ask whether diverticulitis can affect your upper bowel ( the bit that runs horizontally) I've got a lot of pain there and I'm wondering if it's that. I wish I'd had a full colonoscopy instead of just the sigmoidoscopy. I might ask for one next time I'm in clinic. Funny really cause up til last November I thought I had guts of iron!