A woman whose has been diagnosed with colon cancer has detailed the five signs she dismissed after simply 'assuming her bra was too tight'.
In the US, colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths, with 153,020 being diagnosed with the disease in 2023 and over 52,000 people losing their lives, according to experts.
Radwah Oda, from Houston, Texas, dismissed the early warning signs of colon cancer and has detailed five symptoms you shouldn't ignore.
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"If you have any of these symptoms, please don’t be concerned, but go see a doctor. Advocate for yourself," she said in a viral TikTok video.
Chronic fatigue
While issues around the stomach area would be an obvious symptom for such a cancer, chronic fatigue is an obvious one you should probably go and get checked out.
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Oda explained how she suffered from extreme tiredness before being diagnosed with cancer, which was ultimately a tell-tale sign.
She said in the video: "I had extreme chronic fatigue regardless of how many hours of sleep I slept at night. I would still need to take a nap a few times during the day and nothing really helped."
Pain that is unexplained
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Abdominal pain is another symptom of colon cancer, but if you're experiencing pain elsewhere in your body, then it could be a sign the cancer has spread.
While this can be different for every individual, Oda explained how she noticed pain on her right side near her breast, though she initially dismissed it as something else.
"I just assumed my bra was too tight, even though it was just on one side," she said.
Ora later found out the pain was due to cancer spreading to her liver.
Thin stool
In the viral TikTok video, Oda revealed how one of the early symptoms she experienced was 'pencil-thin' stool.
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"My excuse at the time was that it must be constipation," the TikToker recalled.
While the odd narrow stools shouldn't be a cause for concern, consistent changes in your stool should really be looked at.
Blood in stool
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On top of her stool being 'pencil-thin', Oda ignored a common symptom of colon cancer which is blood found in your stool.
The TikToker initially put the symptom down to haemorrhoids.
Never satisfied using the toilet
Oda explained that how each time she needed the restroom she still 'needed to go more'.
She added: "I wasn't empty and I kept pushing and pushing, but nothing would come out. Again, I just assumed it was constipation."
Callum Jones