A guy who was given a stage 4 colon cancer diagnosis has been open about the warning signs he knew existed before his diagnosis.
Joe Faratzis described the warning signs that he was suffering from a serious disease and admitted that he had “put these symptoms off for months.”
For additional information, he disclosed on TikTok that he decided to have a colonoscopy despite the warning signs.
He is now saying that “early screening could save you and your family” and cautioning against “risking your life by waiting to see a doctor.”
He revealed that his symptoms started in 2019 and that he was diagnosed five years ago at the age of 28.
The TMZ producer acknowledged that he thought the symptoms weren’t serious at the time, so he ignored a CT scan and his doctor’s warnings.
According to Self Magazine, he thought he was invincible.That is, until he decided to share the warning signs with others who might be disregarding them as well because he could no longer ignore them.
Sweating and perspiration during the night
Cathy Eng, MD, Professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told Patient Power that symptoms of advanced colon cancer include “night sweats, weight loss, pain, chronic anemia, fatigue, shortness of breath, and loss of energy.”
This implies that the cancer has either spread or advanced to a stage when treatment is more challenging.
Lower right abdominal pain
Where you experience pain may indicate the location of colon cancer, according to Healthline.
For instance, the ascending colon, also referred to as “the first part of your colon that attaches to your small intestine,” is located in the lower right section. The stool is lifted.
Regularly going to the bathroom
“I should have realized that I was going to the bathroom a lot more often than I should have, probably a couple of times a day,” he said.
abdominal cramps when leaning over
He disclosed that he felt pain everytime he leaned over, but he dismissed his CT scan, believing it to be a minor ailment.
Constipation and cramping
According to the MC Anderson Cancer Center, constipation and diarrhea are both obvious symptoms of colorectal cancer, despite the NHS’s claim that the disease may alter bowel patterns.
Blood-containing stool
He assumed the blood on his toilet paper was from hemorrhoids, or piles, and brushed it off six months later.
But the main clue that something wasn’t quite right was drawing near.
The 34-year-old disclosed, “A few months later, I had a major turning point that inspired me to take my symptoms seriously.” I was sitting on the couch when I passed gas, and when I looked down, I saw blood.
When I went to the bathroom, there was about a half cup of blood in the toilet. Even while it wasn’t uncomfortable, I thought, “Holy f–k — obviously there’s some issue here.”
According to Faratzis, he had treatments to burn and freeze tumors that had formed on his liver and lungs, had surgery to remove cancerous parts of his colon, and got oral and intravenous chemotherapy while he was being tested.
Fortunately, his health started to improve when his treatments started, and in 2023 he had his first clear CT scan.
In April of this year, he celebrated a full year of clear scans, meaning he can now “kind of forget about this for another three months” until his next scan.
“I might not have ended up in the position I’m in now if I had gotten the CT scan back in 2019 when I had my earliest colorectal cancer symptoms,” he said, admitting that he could have prevented himself from ending up in such a dire situation.
It turns out that having a functioning rectum is actually crucial for your quality of life, he told viewers following his experience, and he has now become an advocate for early identification.
