UC active
Hi, I was diagnosed with UC about 5 years ago, at 45 years old. Not really received much support or advice from specialist. I suppose my UC is mild, with only one hospitalisation in that time.
I've been a bit confused lately with one aspect. My specialist told me a year or so ago, at our last meeting, that when I turned 50 and got my bowel screening test, it'd show up as abnormal and be flagged for follow-up (ie a colonoscopy most likely). However, I had the result of my screening this week and it has shown my sample as perfectly normal and requiring no further action. Now, obviously that's good from a bowel cancer point of view, but I'm a bit confused why my UC did not flag my sample as requiring investigation. Is it just that it's not 'active' at the moment and didn't show up? Or was my specialist mistaken last year when he said IBD will show up on a bowel screening test?
Anyone know?
Hi
I'm not sure why it wouldn't show unless your original diagnosis of UC was incorrect. Did you have a colonoscopy to determine your diagnosis 5 years ago? Maybe it's not UC but something else that mimics UC like Crohn's or proctitis. Maybe ask your GI for another colonoscopy or a fecal calprotectin or even an inflammatory marker test.
Let us know how you get on.
Vern - IBD Team MemberHi Vern, thanks for the response. Yeah, I had a colonoscopy in 2018. I'm going to ask about it. Will let you know. Thanks!
I obviously can't say for certain, but I imagine if your UC is mild and is in remission, it's possible that they've not really seen it.
Also, I'm not sure whether I'm being thick here, but I would hope the person interpreting the results (who I'd assume does this all of the time for a living) would be able to see the difference between bowel cancer and UC. I would also assume that if something had been seen, the most sensible thing to do would be to check your medical records to see your history and confirm that it is in fact a diagnosed condition of yours.
- Sahara (team member)Hi. Yeah, just an update on this. I phoned IBD nurse. She confirmed my diagnosis of UC and ran through what this is based on so I'm assuming my condition wasn't misdiagnosed. She said that my UC may not have shown up on the test due to me currently being in remission. Obviously I'm happy there's no bowel cancer signs showing up. I was just surprised they didn't flag the UC. But I suppose that's due to remission.
