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Suggest Treatment For Blood Tinged Phlegm And Breathlessness During Pregnancy

Posted on Fri, 4 Apr 2014

Question: Hi , im 23 yr old female, im 19 weeks pregnant and have been having shortness of breath since early pregnancy, i was asthmatic as a child but havnt had muh trouble since, i was a smoker for about 8 years! Every now and then i get like pain in my ribs and also my shoulder and outer arm, and also found i had blood tinged phlegm but not sure if its from my chest or my nose as my nose seems to have bloody snot also! I have had the feeling to clear my throat for sometime now and when i wake up in the morning my chest is really tight! Im scared i have lung cancer!

Answered by Dr. Som Biswas (38 minutes later)

Brief Answer: Get a chest x-ray with abdominal shield Detailed Answer: Hi XXXXX, Thank you for the query. I understand your concerns. History of smoking and blood tinged phlegm can be due to cancer but diseases like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is also a possibility. Do you get breathless? If yes is it always or sometimes? Did you recently have weight or appetite loss? Is the pain in your ribs and shoulder on both sides and any one side? Does it increase by doing anything like heavy work etc? I will also advise you to get a chest x-ray but since you are pregnant you should tell the x-ray technician to cover your belly with abdominal shield so that your baby does not get any radiation. Feel free to ask us further queries.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Shanthi.E

Follow up: Dr. Som Biswas (37 minutes later)

I get breathless at times, not always breathless but just from doing things like lifting or hanging out washing, now i am really scared of lung cancer!

Answered by Dr. Som Biswas (3 minutes later)

Brief Answer: Get the chest xray Detailed Answer: Hi XXXXX, Thank you for your reply. I think you should get the chest x-ray done as your symptoms are not normal. Feel free to contact us with the report. Regard

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Shanthi.E

Follow up: Dr. Som Biswas (12 minutes later)

My doctor tells me that my lungs sound clear and that he doesnt feel the need for a chest xray, im cery scared i have a young family and i ferl your answerd are not detailed enough, could you please give me a more detailed answer

Answered by Dr. Som Biswas (2 hours later)

Brief Answer: You need tests. Detailed Answer: DearXXXXX, Thank you I mean to say that breathlessness, blood from throat or nose, pain in ribs with a smoking history of 8 years needs further workup to find out the exact cause. What I will advise you are to go step by step. First get your nose and throat checked to find exact site of bleed. This might need scopy i.e. putting a tube with camera to see the site of bleed. Next a chest x-ray is useful as it will at least confirm that everything is normal. A just clear lung sound is not sufficient. Also it will show your ribs and help finding cause of pain there. Bottom line is when you have problems you need checkup to find exact cause as early as possible so that correct treatment can be started. It might not be lung cancer but at least we need to know what it is. It cannot be just brushed aside. Feel free to contact me and DO NOT worry. It might not be something serious but at least we need to be sure that it is not serious. Regards and feel free to contact me.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Shanthi.E

Follow up: Dr. Som Biswas (13 hours later)

Yes i understand what your sayinh but the blood was only a small amount and given my age amd pregnancy wouldnt you think its more likely to be something else?

Answered by Dr. Som Biswas (15 hours later)

Brief Answer: Lets find the cause Detailed Answer: Hi, Thanks for writing back. Yes, given your age I will generally not suspect lung cancer. But all I am saying is instead of not doing the tests and losing sleep over it you can get the tests done, find out the actual cause (which I sincerely hope is not cancer) and have peace of mind. Also pregnancy and small amount of blood are no clues to the actual cause. Regards,

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Raju A.T