Celiac or not?

Hello all. I am usually posting on the IBS forum but recently it occurred to me, having researched some info on the net and spoken to a couple of people I know, that I might have gluten problems. So many of the symptoms seem to be common to both conditions.
I have had digestion "issues" for some considerable time, which, after various tests such as sigmoidoscopy, colonoscopy and bloods, was diagnosed as IBS.
I don't have problems all the time though, although I consume gluten on a regular basis in bread, pasta and cereals. I have a flare up at present and am seeing the GP this afternoon. Would it be worth asking for celiac tests? My other concern is that I gather that if celiac is misdiagnsosed for some time (about 15 years in my case) there is a risk of serious complications such as gastro cancer. Does anyone know how much of a danger this is?
Thanks for any help and advice. These are really great forums.

Hi Easta,

I was diagnosed with IBS for more than 30 years before I finally discovered that it was celiac disease. If I had been diagnosed earlier, I might not have so many *^%&$# autoimmune diseases!! :)

Oh well....

Here are some cancer statistics from an Internet search:

linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0002934303003024

Results

Forty-three (11%) of 381 celiac disease patients had a diagnosis of cancer; 9 were after the diagnosis of celiac disease, 7 were simultaneous (during same month or admission), and 27 were before the diagnosis. The standardized morbidity ratio for all cancers combined was 1.5 (95% CI: 0.3 to 7.5), with significantly increased values for small bowel cancer (SMR = 34; 95% CI: 24 to 42), esophageal cancer (SMR = 12; 95% CI: 6.5 to 21), non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (SMR = 9.1; 95% CI: 4.7 to 13), and melanoma (SMR = 5.0; 95% CI: 2.1 to 12). Following the diagnosis of celiac disease, patients were at increased risk of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma only (SMR = 6.2; 95% CI: 2.9 to 14), despite adherence to a gluten-free diet. The non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma included both T-cell and B-cell types and occurred in both gastrointestinal (n = 5) and extraintestinal sites (n = 4).
Conclusion

In this cohort of patients with celiac disease, we observed increased risks of small intestinal adenocarcinoma, esophageal cancer, melanoma, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The risk of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma persisted despite a gluten-free diet.

That being said, the advice from the previous poster is good. Please be aware that there are MANY false negatives in testing for celiac disease (both bloodwork and intestinal biopsies). You should try the gluten free diet even if all of your tests are negative.

Take care! Best wishes to you; please keep us posted!
JoAnn