A dad who received a heartbreaking cancer diagnosis was misdiagnosed by doctors for months with acid reflux and depression. Ricky Evans said he began suffering with extreme fatigue and chest pain eight months ago before he was told he had lymphoma.
When he went to the doctors, the HGV driver was told he had acid reflux and was sent away with omeprazole, the MEN reports. However when the pain worsened, the 32-year-old returned to his GP who suggested he might have depression and gave him a stronger dose of medication.
The dad-of-two said: "I am usually a very active person but I started feeling really tired all of the time. I would come home from work and feel really fatigued and was having to go for a nap. I started to get pains in the centre of my chest which felt like pressure but I didn’t really think it was anything to worry about."
Ricky said he only took one of the antidepressants given to him by his doctor, as he didn't believe he needed them. In January, lumps began to appear on his neck but he was fobbed off by docs again who told him it was just swollen glands.
The dad, from Caerwent, Wales, recalled: "I went to the doctors and they said it could be acid reflux, I didn’t think it felt like that but they gave me omeprazole for it which I took. A few weeks later I was still feeling the chest pain so went back to the doctors and they gave me lansoprazole which is meant to be stronger.
"It didn’t do anything and I still didn’t feel right but they had told me to just keep taking it and it will eventually help. The fatigue was still bad and I could still feel the pressure so I went back to the doctors again and they said could it be stress.
"I said my life was good, I have a good job, I didn’t have anything to be stressed about and I didn’t feel worried about anything. But they gave me some antidepressants, I only took one because it didn’t feel necessary, I was fine. I felt so useless, no one was listening to me."
By February, Ricky had six lumps on his neck but was told his bloods came back all fine. When the lumps still remained around three weeks later, with two very prominent ones beneath his jaw, the doctor finally said to do a biopsy to be on "the safe side". While waiting for his results, the dad took a "funny turn" at home and had to call an ambulance and paramedics took him to A&E.
Ricky was diagnosed with stage three lymphoma on March 14, after medics at Royal Gwent Hospital rushed through his biopsy and a CT scan revealed he had further lumps in his abdomen, in front of and behind his spleen. Ricky said: "I was in hospital for three days, the consultant told me he thought it could by lymphoma.
"They rushed through my biopsy so they could confirm the diagnosis. By this point I had it in my mind I had cancer. My family were so upset and worried, but I was just relieved to get a diagnosis after such a long time."
The dad has been told his cancer is classed as low risk but he may need both chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment. He added: "It felt good to get answers and that someone was listening to me after all that time."
While waiting for further news, Ricky has urged others to push for answers from doctors if something doesn't feel right with their bodies. He said: "Don’t get palmed off, listen to your body. You can feel stupid trying to tell a medical professional something isn’t right but only you know your own body."
A spokesman for Aneurin Bevan University Health Board said: "We’re very sorry that Mr Evans is unhappy with the care that he received and send our best wishes to him during his treatment. We would urge Mr Evans to contact us directly so that we can discuss the treatment received and any concerns regarding our services."
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