Pcos vs. Cushing's

[Donna415 47]

Hey everyone!

So I am 3 months into my journey of the 6 month supervised weight checks. I have had pcos much longer but only diagnosed in March of 2014 and have been on Metformin and BC since then but the last time I had blood work done in March 2016, my testosterone levels were higher than a "normal" PCOS person so my pcp sent me to an endocrinologist.

I just saw the endo on Thursday and she said she is not so much concerned with the testosterone levels as she is with the color of the stretch marks on my stomach and the top of my arm by my armpit. She is thinking possible Cushing's and I am now waiting to go in for bloodwork this morning after having a dexamethasone(sp) pill and then next week I have to collect my urine for 24 hours and do another blood test.

Not only am I scared of the treatments for Cushing's depending on the cause of it, but I'm also worried about it affecting my August or September GBS. She said if the bloodwork comes back ok, then she will continue treatment for PCOS. I guess I'm just needing input on anyone who has gone through this or anyone who was diagnosed with Cushing's and still had the surgery?

Sorry for such a long and depressing first post, my nerves are just getting the best of me and you all are a wealth of knowledge

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Edited May 28, 2016 by Donna415

[Read2016 658]

@donna415... WLS treats many different diseases, have you research to see how it would impact cushings?.... I too have pcos and wasn't diagnosised til later... I was on Metformin, spiro to lower testosterone etc... I'm insulin resistant, which basically means your blood sugar is dysfunction, the result of being in a pre-diabetic state for a number of years...

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[KristenLe 5,980]

I have all the symptoms of Cushing's but my cortisol tests were normal. I never did 24hr urine though. Hopefully your tests will be negative.

[Donna415 47]

@ I have looked into it and what I'm finding is that because Cushing's is an over production of cortisol, it causes fat deposits and leads to obesity so even with the surgery, it can work against it. The main reasons for Cushing's is a most likely benign tumor on the pituitary, high use of steroids like prednisone, etc. I don't take any steroidal medications. I was also on spiro for 1.5 years but I requested to be taken off of it because it wasn't helping. The high testosterone level was while I was on it and it didn't help with the hair growth. When I see the endo again, I will ask if wls can still help with it even if I would need to have another surgery to help Cushing's if I have it. When I asked her what the treatment was, she said it's complicated because there are multiple reasons as to why someone has it so she said we will wait until that point.

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[Donna415 47]

I have all the symptoms of Cushing's but my cortisol tests were normal. I never did 24hr urine though. Hopefully your tests will be negative.

Thank you!

I'm sooooo hoping they are. It may be about 3 weeks before I know because I have to do the urine test 5-7 days after this pill/blood work test.

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[Read2016 658]

I've done the 24 hours urine test, I don't recall results taking too long... I thinking wait is the worst, in our minds we make ourselves crazy preparing for all the possible outcomes... Go pamper yourself, get a massage or something to take your mind off things or open a bottle of wine lol

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[Donna415 47]

I've done the 24 hours urine test, I don't recall results taking too long... I thinking wait is the worst, in our minds we make ourselves crazy preparing for all the possible outcomes... Go pamper yourself, get a massage or something to take your mind off things or open a bottle of wine lol

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I 100% agree. It's the wait that kills me lol. I may do just that later on, I have a bottle of wine screaming my name.

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[Read2016 658]

Go for it????

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[Donna415 47]

Now, if it isn't one thing, it's another and I'm starting to truly believe Murphy's law. Went for my cardio clearance yesterday and the ekg is abnormal. I have to go back two days in a row for stress tests and hope that they will clear me. This process is really really getting me to my wits end.

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[Donna415 47]

One more update, it a call from the endo saying that the test came back normal and that I don't have Cushing's! I seriously cried, I was so happy.

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