When people think of cancer, the first thing that comes to mind is suspicious lumps on the body or sudden and unexplained weight loss. However, the young Briton Dan found out firsthand that the reality can be completely different. Diagnosed with blood cancer when he was 28, the most obvious warning sign that forced him to seek help, few would have expectedstates
Dan successfully beat the disease and has been officially healthy for over a year. After going through difficult chemotherapy and a transplant, today he helps thousands of his followers with mental and physical recovery after oncology treatment. In one of his videos, he openly shared how the disease began to manifest itself in him.
“If I had to pick the biggest symptom of having cancer at 28, it wouldn’t be anything that most people think. For me, it was fatigue,” he recalls. At the same time, however, he immediately explained that it was not an ordinary feeling of exhaustion, what a person experiences after a hard day at work or after a hard workout in the fitness center.
“I mean when you’re doing absolutely nothing, but you still feel like you’ve just run a marathon. I remember how I was shopping and out of nowhere I felt incredibly nauseous, dizzy, and those zigzag lines started to appear in front of my eyes. I knew I had to go home immediately,” he describes the terrifying moment.
After arriving home, the young man he literally collapsed and fell asleep for six to seven hours. But when he woke up, his condition was even worse than before he went to sleep. That’s when he definitely understood that something was wrong. “It felt like my body was shutting down. I’m not going to lie, I was very lucky that I listened to my body then because it was just the beginning.” adds Dan.
Early detection of potential cancer symptoms is, according to the British organization Cancer Research UK, a key factor for the success of the entire treatment. Although there are a huge number of symptoms, these are the most common warning signs to look out for.
General symptoms are severe night sweats or fever, feeling constantly and excessively tired, unexplained bleeding or bruising, unknown aches and pains in the body, expected weight loss without a change in diet or exercise, and an unusual lump or swelling anywhere on the body.
The disease can manifest itself in the mouth, throat and voice a hoarse voice, hoarseness or cough that does not go away, canker sores or ulcers on the tongue and mouth that do not heal for more than three weeks, problems with swallowing, shortness of breath or shortness of breath.
For example, you can notice that something is not right changes in the size, shape or sensitivity of the breasts or chest area (including nipples), new birthmarks (or visible changes to the existing one), any changes in the skin and nails. Also sharpen your attention when wounds and lesions that do not heal for a long time, or yellowing of the skin and the whites of the eyes.
You should not ignore either constant bloating or abdominal pain, loss of appetite and long-term heartburn or indigestion. The last warning signs are problems passing urine, sudden changes in bowel movements, blood in the stool or urine, and unexplained gynecological bleeding.
