Pruritus and raised Gamma GT

[ItchyGamma]

Hi,

I’ve had pruritus for a few weeks now which was then joined by a sore lymph node in my left groin area on Boxing Day which later subsided and was replaced by a point pain in my upper right abdomen that’s reminds me it’s there whenever I breath in deeply or lean down to pick something up or do shoe laces up, for example. That pain has been around for most of January so far. Also getting a bit of an ache on my lower back on the left side now. No signs of jaundice so far.

Blood tests showed normal blood count, kidney function, no presence of diabetes, no anaemia and normal LFT...... except Gamma GT was 86 (with 71 being the upper limit for my age group).

The itchiness is worse in the evening but not unbearable at the moment.

I hardly drank over Xmas (although the GP thinks it could explain the isolated raised GGT), but I’m abstaining now and will be having bloods redone early Feb. I’ve never been a heavy drinker but I have taken a tetracycline antibiotic daily for many years to address a hair follicle infection in my beard area (LFT tests have therefore been quite regular and are why I discovered I have Gilbert’s syndrome).

Out of curiosity, did anyone in the community suffer these symptoms as the early signs of their liver (or other) condition? I lost an old school friend to Bile Duct Cancer barely a year ago, so I’m more than a little concerned.

Sorry for adding to the copious ‘what’s wrong with me’ posts, but I became a Dad at a late age and my twin girls are only 5 years old, so I need to stick around for a good while longer if I can!

I am booked for a transabominal ultrasound, so I should have some insight soon enough.

[briccolone]

hi and welcome-re itchiness-is this localised or all over? I've had pruritus a few times due to fatty liver -actually first had it when I stopped drinking for a few months. My GGT levels were way higher than yours. I tend to get the issues on the ankles/calves instep. It typically goes after 10 days in my experience. I suspect alcohol not a factor in your case but if you have Gilberts syndrome the two combined may be a problem. I'm no doc obvs but if you avoid alcohol for a few weeks and see what happens. There are plenty of folk on this forum who have had similar issues. Best K

[ItchyGamma in reply to briccolone]

Thanks for your reply. It does seem to be less noticeable after 9 dry days (also without taking antibiotics). The itch started on my shins and calves, then seemed to like my right upper arm before deciding my scalp was a nice place to settle!

I also have a bit of telangiectasia on the right ankle instep that’s recently appeared.....weird!

An ultrasound yesterday showed no signs of liver issues (to my surprise), but the doctor couldn’t see much of the pancreas, so I may need a CT next.

Next bloods are early Feb to see if GGT has settled or worsened. The doctor doing yesterday’s scan didn’t think 86 was very high either, and also said my tender area is more in the right side bowel area. Last colonoscopy was October 2018, and that was clear. Shrugging my shoulders here!

[briccolone in reply to ItchyGamma]

ok sounds like you've got a plan of attack-also good to hear the symptoms are abating-best K