In 2021, Alyssa Burks, now 33, became perpetually fatigued, developedheartburn, and started havingtrouble swallowing.
Tests later revealed she had stage-four stomach (a.k.a.
Heres her story, as told to health writer Julia Ries.
Alyssa Burks
This started during the pandemic in 2021.
I went to work, came home, and went right to sleep.
My fatigue was affecting my relationship.
My spouse was like, This isnt working.
You dont want to do anything.
I told him something was wrongId never felt so low-energy in my entire life.
I went to myprimary care physicianand told her how tired I felt.
She, too, asked if I was unusually stressed.
I let her know I typically handle stress wellthis seemed different.
She ordered a full blood workup and my results came back normal.
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My restingheart ratestarted randomly spiking.
(It was normally between 60 and 70.)
It didnt make senseit happened when I felt totally relaxed.
I went back to my doctor and told her about this.
I developed heartburn, which felt like a burning sensation in my chest all day, every day.
It didnt matter what I ateit was constant.
I googled my symptoms, but couldnt find any answers.
I was prescribed a medication that reduces stomach acid, which didnt help.
I still had heartburn, an elevated heart rate, and terrible exhaustion.
My doctor had me wear a heart monitor for two days to measure any irregular activity.
That test didnt reveal any issues, which my doctor suspected was because the medication was regulating my heartbeat.
I started having difficulty swallowing food and water.
When I tried to drink, it felt like I was drowning.
Id dealt with these symptoms for around two years, and things were only getting worse.
My PCP was concerned about my weight loss and swallowing and suggested I see a gastroenterologist.
Up until this point, I was repeatedly told I was healthyeven though I didn’tfeelhealthy.
I saw a GI specialist in March 2023, and, from the start, she was very concerned.
She said my symptoms werent normal, especially for someone my age.
Then he took a deep breath and asked if cancer ran in my family.
I thought, Whoathat was a weird shift, and said, Nonot that I know of.
He said hed contact me when my results came in and sent me on my way.
Five days later, the doctor got in touch to go over my results.
It was so shocking that I didnt have much of a reaction.
My mind was zeroed in on what was next: Where do we go from here?
I also needed to have part of my stomach surgically removed and beginchemotherapy.
I was so annoyed, like, Okay, more delays.
I shared my biopsy results, and one of the girls had the same exact jot down of cancer.
Soon after that, I got connected with an oncology team.
I was diagnosed with stage IV gastric cancer.
I pulled myself together, finished the meeting, and went home and cried.
My family immediately came over and sat with me as we all quietly processed the diagnosis.
(That hit me the hardest.)
Up until this point, I was annoyed and frustrated, but this rocked my world.
After receiving this news, I really struggled emotionally.
I wasnt sleeping well.
I tried to not think about cancer, but I couldnt escape my thoughts: Its stage IV.
I told my medical team I can usually deal with stress just fine, but this was overwhelming.
I was prescribed anti-anxiety medication and started seeing atherapist, which helped me cope with everything.
I thought, Great, this is my opportunity to have the surgery I need.
I was fine with that: I wanted to do everything I could to fight the cancer.
The ovarian cyst had grown.
I was terrified: Here was yet another thing to get over.
Fortunately, I was allowed to proceed with the trial, since the imaging results were inconclusive.
The surgeon I met with was reluctant.
I figured, I can handlemenopauseat the age of 33Im okay with that.
On January 30, I had my ovaries, fallopian tubes, and entire stomach surgically removed.
The surgeon apologized to my husband at the hospital, but never communicated this news to me.
I think she was embarrassed.
Shortly after, my other surgeon contacted me to discuss the pathology report.
The cancer, he said, was very angryit expanded throughout my stomach and climbed further into my esophagus.
It was detected in 27 lymph nodes, which indicated it metastasized to other parts of my body.
I wasnt cancer-free at allinstead, I was dealing with an extremely aggressive form.
I was in shock, but focused on what was next.
I talked to my support group, and they helped me jot down follow-up questions.
After surgery, I had to relearn how to eat.
My esophagus is directly connected to my intestinesits a straight line.
Its been a massive change, and Im still getting used to it.
On April 11, I had a follow-up endoscopy to examine how the cancer responded to the trial.
The doctors took one biopsy and said that everything looked good.
I also did a Signatera test to see if the DNA from my tumor was also in my blood.
It feels weird to just leave it alone.
Im so blessed to be here.
