{"id":28692,"date":"2025-05-30T09:02:03","date_gmt":"2025-05-30T09:02:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/?p=28692"},"modified":"2025-05-30T09:26:54","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T09:26:54","slug":"he-was-bleeding-internally-then-doctors-found-the-real-danger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/?p=28692","title":{"rendered":"He Was Bleeding Internally. Then Doctors Found the Real Danger."},"content":{"rendered":"<div><\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-79rysd e1wiw3jv0\">After weeks of discomfort, the 25-year-old man got a shocking explanation for his abdominal pain.<\/p>\n<section class=\"meteredContent css-1r7ky0e\">\n<div class=\"css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn\" data-testid=\"companionColumn-0\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The 25-year-old man was shivering. Although the weather in Milwaukie, Ore., was cold and rainy that March evening, his apartment was too warm to explain his chills. He had been having abdominal pain for the past several weeks, but that night it was excruciating \u2014 like a knife plunged deep into his belly, sharp and burning. All the strength seemed to seep from his body, and he thought he might pass out. That\u2019s when he asked his roommate to call 911.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The E.M.T.s were concerned by the man\u2019s pallor and low blood pressure and took him to Kaiser Permanente Sunnyside in Clackamas, just north of the small town where he spent much of his childhood. In the E.R., initial blood tests showed that he had lost a tremendous amount of blood \u2014 nearly half the blood in his system. The man shook with cold beneath the several blankets layered over him. With trembling hands, he signed the consent forms for a transfusion to replace some of what he had lost.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"css-1u37br4 eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-72d7d2a\">Months of Bizarre Symptoms<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">It had been a strange winter. In January, he noticed a bulge in the left side of his abdomen while taking a shower. He pressed on it, and it disappeared, only to reappear when the pressure was released. It didn\u2019t hurt, but it was weird and new. He got in to see a physician assistant 10 days later. The P.A. couldn\u2019t see or feel the lump but ordered an ultrasound to look for it. And they found it: a mass the size of a large grapefruit, about six inches in diameter.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Three weeks later, before any follow-ups had been planned, the man was sent a Valentine\u2019s Day lunch by his girlfriend. He had just started eating when he developed a stabbing pain in his abdomen. It lasted less than a minute. But every mouthful after that moment triggered the same searing pain \u2014 even water. He drove himself to a nearby urgent care center. A CT scan showed clearly that the grapefruit of fluid now filled his entire upper abdomen, compressing his stomach, pancreas and spleen. He was admitted to the hospital.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"Dropzone-1\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn\" data-testid=\"companionColumn-1\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Before Dr. Amit Sadana, the gastroenterologist assigned to his care, met the patient the following day, he had already reviewed the images showing the mass. It was probably digestive enzymes leaking from the pancreas into the abdomen. The man\u2019s body had responded by walling off the fluid with inflammatory cells, forming what is called a pseudocyst. This was usually seen after trauma \u2014 often a serious car accident in which the seatbelt was slammed against the abdomen. The man recalled an accidental hit sustained while wrestling in the snow with a friend a couple of months earlier. Sadana looked dubious \u2014 it usually took more force than that.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In any case, the doctor said, he could put a tube into the pseudocyst and let the fluid flow into the man\u2019s stomach. That would reduce the pressure and allow the inflammatory mass to resolve. That was done the next day, and for the first time in weeks, the young man was able to eat and drink with no pain. He was sent home a day later; the plan was to let the fluid drain for three or four weeks and then remove the tube. Sadana sent the fluid to the lab to see if there was something else going on. The results showed no evidence of cancer. Pancreatic cancer is rare in someone this young, but it could cause a leak of pancreatic fluid. And it\u2019s not a diagnosis you want to miss.<\/p>\n<div class=\"css-kbghgg\">\n<div class=\"css-121kum4\">\n<div class=\"css-171quhb\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"css-asuuk5\">\n<div class=\"css-7axq9l\" data-testid=\"optimistic-truncator-noscript\">\n<div data-testid=\"optimistic-truncator-noscript-message\" class=\"css-6yo1no\">\n<p class=\"css-3kpklk\">We are having trouble retrieving the article content.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-3kpklk\">Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1dv1kvn\" id=\"optimistic-truncator-a11y\">\n<hr \/>\n<p>Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/myaccount.nytimes.com\/auth\/login?response_type=cookie&amp;client_id=vi&amp;redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2025%2F05%2F30%2Fwell%2F-stomach-pain-weakness-pancreatic-cancer.html&amp;asset=opttrunc\">log into<\/a>\u00a0your Times account, or\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/subscription?campaignId=89WYR&amp;redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2025%2F05%2F30%2Fwell%2F-stomach-pain-weakness-pancreatic-cancer.html\">subscribe<\/a>\u00a0for all of The Times.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1g71tqy\">\n<div data-testid=\"optimistic-truncator-message\" class=\"css-6yo1no\">\n<p class=\"css-3kpklk\">Thank you for your patience while we verify access.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-3kpklk\">Already a subscriber?\u00a0<a data-testid=\"log-in-link\" class=\"css-z5ryv4\" href=\"https:\/\/myaccount.nytimes.com\/auth\/login?response_type=cookie&amp;client_id=vi&amp;redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2025%2F05%2F30%2Fwell%2F-stomach-pain-weakness-pancreatic-cancer.html&amp;asset=opttrunc\">Log in<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-3kpklk\">Want all of The Times?\u00a0<a data-testid=\"subscribe-link\" class=\"css-z5ryv4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/subscription?campaignId=89WYR&amp;redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2025%2F05%2F30%2Fwell%2F-stomach-pain-weakness-pancreatic-cancer.html\">Subscribe<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>After weeks of discomfort, the 25-year-old man got a shocking explanation for his abdominal pain.The 25-year-old man was shivering. Although the weather in Milwaukie, Ore., was cold and rainy that March evening, his apartment was too warm to explain his chills. He had been having abdominal pain for the past several weeks, but that night it was excruciating \u2014 like a knife plunged deep into his belly, sharp and burning. All the strength seemed to seep from his body, and he thought he might pass out. That\u2019s when he asked his roommate to call 911.The E.M.T.s were concerned by the man\u2019s pallor and low blood pressure and took him to Kaiser Permanente Sunnyside in Clackamas, just north of the small town where he spent much of his childhood. In the E.R., initial blood tests showed that he had lost a tremendous amount of blood \u2014 nearly half the blood in his system. The man shook with cold beneath the several blankets layered over him. With trembling hands, he signed the consent forms for a transfusion to replace some of what he had lost.Months of Bizarre SymptomsIt had been a strange winter. In January, he noticed a bulge in the left side of his abdomen while taking a shower. He pressed on it, and it disappeared, only to reappear when the pressure was released. It didn\u2019t hurt, but it was weird and new. He got in to see a physician assistant 10 days later. The P.A. couldn\u2019t see or feel the lump but ordered an ultrasound to look for it. And they found it: a mass the size of a large grapefruit, about six inches in diameter.Three weeks later, before any follow-ups had been planned, the man was sent a Valentine\u2019s Day lunch by his girlfriend. He had just started eating when he developed a stabbing pain in his abdomen. It lasted less than a minute. But every mouthful after that moment triggered the same searing pain \u2014 even water. He drove himself to a nearby urgent care center. A CT scan showed clearly that the grapefruit of fluid now filled his entire upper abdomen, compressing his stomach, pancreas and spleen. He was admitted to the hospital.Before Dr. Amit Sadana, the gastroenterologist assigned to his care, met the patient the following day, he had already reviewed the images showing the mass. It was probably digestive enzymes leaking from the pancreas into the abdomen. The man\u2019s body had responded by walling off the fluid with inflammatory cells, forming what is called a pseudocyst. This was usually seen after trauma \u2014 often a serious car accident in which the seatbelt was slammed against the abdomen. The man recalled an accidental hit sustained while wrestling in the snow with a friend a couple of months earlier. Sadana looked dubious \u2014 it usually took more force than that.In any case, the doctor said, he could put a tube into the pseudocyst and let the fluid flow into the man\u2019s stomach. That would reduce the pressure and allow the inflammatory mass to resolve. That was done the next day, and for the first time in weeks, the young man was able to eat and drink with no pain. He was sent home a day later; the plan was to let the fluid drain for three or four weeks and then remove the tube. Sadana sent the fluid to the lab to see if there was something else going on. The results showed no evidence of cancer. Pancreatic cancer is rare in someone this young, but it could cause a leak of pancreatic fluid. And it\u2019s not a diagnosis you want to miss.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and\u00a0log into\u00a0your Times account, or\u00a0subscribe\u00a0for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber?\u00a0Log in.Want all of The Times?\u00a0Subscribe.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2528,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28692","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28692","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28692"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28692\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28694,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28692\/revisions\/28694"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2528"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28692"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=28692"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=28692"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}