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Family History Not Whole Story: Please Pay Attention to Symptoms
Publication Date:1/18/2009 6:19:00 PM
Under "Family History of Serious Illness" Cindy Caubarreaux always checked "no". So the young wife and mother from Tomball was shocked to hear at age 28 that she had stage 3 colon cancer.
Looking back, Caubarreaux admits that classic warning signs were easily brushed off. First, she had just given birth to Hayley, her second child with husband Chris. Spotting blood pointed to hemorrhoids. Second, the active mom fell outside all the traditional at risk groups—she was younger than 50, and her family had no history of colon cancer.
For two years, Caubarreaux rationalized bouts of stomach distress and constipation until an unforgettable Easter 2008 dinner when unbearable pain drove her to the Colon & Rectal Clinic´s Lisa Chen, M.D.
"Colorectal cancers typically grow from small polyps," said Dr. Chen. "Cindy´s tumor had become too large to get through with a colonoscope."
Surgery was performed after six weeks of chemotherapy and radiation to shrink the tumor.
Dr. Chen then performed a surgical resection and removed the lymph nodes. Another round of chemotherapy followed.Today, Caubarreaux is dealing with early menopause—a result of the radiation treatment. Still, she´s full of energy and pursuing her degree in interior design and sewing creatively fashionable dresses for her kids. Hopeful that the cancer is behind her, she takes every opportunity to speak out about cancer awareness.
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