A woman diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer shares the five warning signs she overlooked.

A woman diagnosed with colon cancer has identified five potential signs that may suggest the presence of the disease.

At the age of 44, TikToker Cherl was diagnosed with stage three colon cancer in 2012, but following a lengthy fight, she was given the all clear and has been raising awareness of the deadly disease ever since.

Cherl has shared the five signs she had cancer that she ignored.

Severe changes in bowel habits

"I would experience three to four days without a bowel movement, followed by diarrhea. This was during the initial phase when, had I consulted a doctor and undergone a colonoscopy, they could have potentially detected the pre-cancerous polyps," she elaborated.

Experiencing constipation occasionally is generally not a cause for concern; however, if it starts happening more often, it may indicate a potential issue such as cancer.

However, for Cherl, she had been facing these issues for several years prior to her diagnosis, completely oblivious to the fact that she had cancer.

Experiencing dizziness due to discomfort in the chest.

"She shared with her audience, 'All my blood was being diverted to my tumors,' as she recounted her experience of chest pain and feeling lightheaded."

However, during activities that increased her heart rate, she would once again experience a sensation in her chest. She remarked, “It felt as if my heart was about to burst from my chest. Whenever I stood up, I would feel lightheaded.”

Abdominal discomfort

When considering potential indicators of colon cancer, stomach pain is often mentioned as a primary symptom. However, since such discomfort is quite common, it is unlikely that cancer is the underlying cause.

“Whenever I ate anything, I would feel unwell. My stomach would hurt so much that I eventually became withdrawn and stopped going out,” Cherl shared.

“I couldn’t do that because who knows when I would have to excuse myself and go to the bathroom. If you have a stomachache after two out of three meals, there’s something wrong.”

Iron levels were insufficient.

Two decades before she discovered she had cancer, she tried to donate blood with Red Cross but they turned her away because her iron levels were too low.

"Iron deficiency anemia is the most common extraintestinal symptom in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC)," writes Leonidas Chardalias, Ioannis Papaconstantinou, Antonios Gklavas, Marianna Politou and Theodosios Theodosopoulos - authors of a 2023 study into iron deficiency anemia in colorectal cancer patients.

"Malignancy-related inflammation results in functional iron deficiency through the hepcidin mechanism, while ongoing blood loss leads to absolute iron deficiency and a reduction in iron reserves."

Blood in your stool

“I just thought it was normal, and then later on, when the cancer progressed, the blood was really dark, almost black. I was thinking the whole time that I had an ulcer,” Cherl said after sharing that she suffered from hemorrhoids earlier in life.