Many diseases share the same symptoms, causing people to get confused and either undermine or overwhelm themselves with worries. With the current flu season on the rise, people in the United States are being very careful about their health and are taking necessary precautions to make sure they do not catch any more respiratory illnesses. Often these diseases show symptoms like coughing and wheezing, nothing that warrants anything more than a general doctor’s visit, sometimes people even think it it is a simple cold, but it could be something worse!

The Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report on 28 February, last Friday on Respiratory Virus Activity Levels reported a moderate number of people are seeking medical help for respiratory illnesses. The flu is sending many people to the emergency room, RSV Respiratory syncytial virus has been sending many people to the ER along with COVID-19.

While flu test results are slightly less positive than last week, COVID-19 and RSV test results are about the same. In our community's wastewater, the flu virus is still very high, COVID-19 is moderate, and RSV is low. Looking forward, we expect COVID-19 emergency room visits to stay low. While flu visits are still high, they should start to go down soon.

So, even though it might feel like winter is ending, these viruses are still active, and we need to be careful. They are not going away quickly and can still spread easily. Here are some symptoms that should be treated with urgency right now.

Severe Dehydration

When you're really sick, you might not feel like eating or drinking. This can lead to dehydration, which is when your body doesn't have enough water. If your pee is dark yellow, or you feel dizzy, you might be dehydrated. If you pass out, get confused, or your heart beats really fast, you need to go to the hospital right away. Healthcare professionals can give you fluids through a needle to help you feel better. Being dehydrated is very dangerous, and it is important to take it seriously.

Breathing Difficulties

If you're having trouble breathing, or if you're breathing really fast, that's a big sign. It could mean that you have pneumonia or that your body isn't getting enough oxygen. Shortness of breath is always a reason to go to the emergency room. Your body is telling you that something is seriously wrong. It is very important to seek help right away. Do not wait it out at home.

Low Oxygen Levels

If your lips or fingers start to turn blue, that means you're not getting enough oxygen. Also, if you're so tired that you can barely get out of bed, that's another sign that you need to go to the hospital. These are serious symptoms that mean your body needs help right away.

Who’s Most at Risk for Severe Symptoms?

Some people are more likely to get very sick from these viruses. Pregnant people, little kids, and older adults are at higher risk. Also, people who have health problems like heart or lung disease, or people with weak immune systems, are more likely to have serious problems. Older adults are often hospitalized with the flu, COVID, and RSV. These groups need to be extra careful to avoid getting sick. It is very important that these groups get vaccinated.

RSV is especially dangerous for babies and young children. It's one of the main reasons why young kids end up in the hospital. This virus can make it very hard for them to breathe. It is very important to protect young children from this virus, especially in the first few years of their lives.

When Andrea de Armas was diagnosed with breast cancer at 26, she was preparing for a future that looked very different from the one she was suddenly handed.

Along with surgery and chemotherapy, she had to make decisions about her fertility and adjust to the of long-term consequences from treatment.

Now 30 and cancer-free, the US woman is still taking hormone therapy. The treatment has put her into temporary menopause.

“I’m really lucky. I feel like I’m doing OK,” de Armas told CBS News. “It took me a little bit to kind of adjust. It wasn’t immediate; it took time. It took understanding the kind of changes my body was going through. But I’m able to live a pretty normal life for a 30-year-old.”

Andrea’s experience highlights a revealing challenge of breast cancer in younger women. Young women who survive breast cancer face a series of emotionally heavy decisions about menstrual cycles, fertility, sexual health and emotional well-being, and menopause that comes decades earlier than expected.

Effects Of Breast Cancer Treatment On Young Women

Also read: Why Peak Incidence For Breast Cancer In India Occurs Between Ages 40–50, Compared To 60–70 In The US & Europe

De Armas initially struggled to get her concerns taken seriously. She was eventually diagnosed with breast cancer in 2023 and discovered that she carried a genetic mutation associated with an increased risk of the disease.

She underwent a lumpectomy in June, followed by chemotherapy. She later had a bilateral mastectomy and reconstruction, scheduling treatment around her studies so she could continue her physician assistant programme.

“We worked together as a team,” said Dr. Cristina Lopez-Penalver, the surgical oncologist at Baptist Health's Herbert Wertheim Cancer Institute who treated her. “She was really not about ready to let this breast cancer get in her way.”

De Armas graduated as a physician assistant in 2025 and began working a month later. However, despite completing surgery and chemotherapy, she continues to take hormone therapy because of the characteristics of her cancer.

That medication has placed her in temporary menopause, a treatment-related effect that can be particularly difficult for younger women to navigate.

Early Menopause Due To Hormone Therapy

Also read: Breast Cancer: Know the Risks, Recognise the Signs & Get Checked

Menopause occurs when the ovaries stop releasing eggs and producing lower levels of hormones, particularly oestrogen.

Although natural menopause usually occurs in the late 40s or early 50s, some cancer treatments can bring on menopause much earlier.

According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), chemotherapy can damage the ovaries, causing periods to become irregular or stop altogether.

Hormone therapy can also block oestrogen's effects to help prevent hormone-sensitive breast cancer from returning.

Some women experience temporary ovarian suppression, in which medication switches off ovarian function during treatment.

Others may develop permanent ovarian damage and early menopause. The outcome depends on the treatment, the woman's age and her ovarian function before treatment. In de Armas' case, hormone therapy has brought on temporary menopause.

The transition can be more abrupt than natural menopause, leaving women with symptoms that affect daily life. Common effects include:

• Hot flashes and night sweats: Sudden waves of heat and sweating can disrupt sleep and daily activities.
• Sleep disturbances and mood changes: Hormonal changes may contribute to insomnia, irritability and low mood.
• Vaginal dryness and sexual discomfort: Reduced oestrogen can affect vaginal tissues and sexual health.
• Changes in fertility: Damage to ovarian function can reduce the chances of conceiving naturally, sometimes permanently.
• Bone health concerns: Low oestrogen levels can accelerate bone loss, increasing the risk of osteoporosis over time.

The National Cancer Institute notes that treatment-related ovarian insufficiency can also cause joint pain, reduced libido and difficulty concentrating.

Menopause is often characterised symptoms like by hot flashes and night sweats. But for some women, the transition can also bring changes in mood, memory and concentration that may be harder to identify. These symptoms can affect everyday life and may be misconstrued as stress, ageing or the emotional effects of children leaving home.

On World Menopause Day 2026, Dr. Abha Majumdar, gynaecologist and one of the lead IVF specialists in the country, told HealthandMe that women and their families need to identify the least obvious symptoms of perimenopause, the transition leading up to menopause.

Menopause Symptoms Dismissed For Empty Nest Syndrome

Empty nest syndrome refers to the feelings of grief, loneliness or loss of purpose that some parents experience when their children leave home to study, work or start their own families. The transition can bring changes to family routines and relationships, especially for parents who have spent years raising their children.

Dr Abha points out that mood changes in women during their 40s should not automatically be attributed to empty nest syndrome.

Perimenopause, the transition leading up to menopause, can also involve mood swings, forgetfulness and difficulty managing everyday tasks.

As she puts it, “Suddenly, around 45 or around that time, she starts feeling depressed. Everyone says, "Oh, children have grown up, you know, it is like an empty nest. But it is not just an empty nest.”

Recognising the symptom is key so that women experiencing new or persistent symptoms are not dismissed as simply struggling with their children leaving home, and can seek medical advice when needed.

Also read: World Menopause Day 2026: Perimenopause Can Begin In Your Late 30s. What Changes Should You Watch For?

Symptoms Not Related To Menstrual Cycle

Perimenopause can bring changes that don't relate to menstrual or hormonal cycle. Women may find themselves to be forgetful about routine things, struggle to concentrate or feel overwhelmed by tasks they previously managed with ease.

Dr Abha explains how these changes may appear in everyday life. She said, “She starts forgetting. She starts finding it difficult to cope with the daily chores which she did very easily before that.”

She says women may also face cognitive symptoms like brain fog and mood swings during this phase. She said, “Forgetfulness, cognition difficulties, brain fogging, mood swings.”

These symptoms can be confusing when women do not know that they come with menopausal transition. Changes in mood, for instance, may be misconstrued as reaction to family responsibilities, work stress or other pressures, while difficulties with memory and concentration may completely go unnoticed.

Also read: Menopause Abruptly Shifts Bones, Liver And Blood Fats, Study Finds

Perimenopause Duration

Perimenopause does not begin at the same age for everyone. Also, the transition may continue for several years before menopause sets in.

Dr Abha said that perimenopause may last for five or even 10 years before menopause sets in. She also said that fluctuating oestrogen levels are part of this phase.

“She's probably going through a perimenopause, which is it estrogen deprived and then comes up, goes down and comes up, and goes down and comes up. It may take couple of years for menopause to set in," she said.

Since the transition can be prolonged, understanding its symptoms is important for women as well as their families. Dr Abha explains that husbands and adult children should be attentive to changes in a woman's behaviour, mood or ability to manage familiar routines, rather than dismissing them.

She also stresses that women's health after menopause deserves attention, particularly as life expectancy increases.

She said, “Please support her at that time because she's got 25 years more to live right away. Maybe more.”

Medical Attention

Mood changes, fatigue, sweating and memory difficulties should not automatically be attributed to menopause. Other health issues can produce similar symptoms, which makes medical attention important.

Dr Abha advises women to seek help whenever they notice a change that makes everyday activities more difficult.

She said, “Any point. If she feels something is happening to her, she's not being able to cope with her daily chores. She used to cook so effortlessly, now it takes a lot of effort. She starts getting tired, she sweats. That is the time. May it be 40, may it be 45, may it be 38 also.”

A doctor can assess menstrual cycle and determine whether symptoms are related to perimenopause or another condition. Dr Abha says investigations may also help identify other possible explanations, including vitamin deficiencies or thyroid problems.

“So, they can be sorted out. So don't avoid going to a doctor if you feel something is changing in your body. And what you were coping with earlier, you're not being able to cope with that.”

Breast cancer is generally considered to be a problem of old age. In India, however, breast cancer is usually diagnosed in women who are in their 40s and 50s, a decade before the average age group in several other parts of the world. While this difference has clinical significance, the reasons behind it are varied and cannot be pinned down to any one biological or genetic cause.

Reproductive and lifestyle differences

Age, hormones, heredity, reproductive history and environment play roles in determining the risk of breast cancer. Historically, differences in age at first birth, number of pregnancies and breastfeeding period could have been responsible for the variance seen in risk levels across populations. Presently, the changing pattern of reproduction, late age of first pregnancy, lower number of births and less breastfeeding among certain groups of Indians could affect the risk of breast cancer.

Other changes include dietary, physical activity and body weight trends due to urbanization. Being overweight, especially postmenopausal, and excessive alcohol intake are known risk factors for breast cancer. But this alone does not account for the difference in age profile of breast cancer in India.

Genetic susceptibility is another factor which needs to be taken into account. Mutations in the inherited genes, including BRCA1 and BRCA2, may lead to the increased risk of development of breast cancer in young women. Nonetheless, there is no sufficient information to suggest that a particular genetic background specific for the Indian population contributes to this difference. More research in the field of genomics is needed.

Another thing to take into account is that the young age of the patients does not mean that the breast cancer occurs more frequently in India compared to other countries. Higher age-standardized incidence rates have been observed in Western countries due to reproductive behaviors, lifestyles, and screenings. Younger age of Indian patients may also be explained by demographic factors, as well as the difference in screenings and diagnoses.

Also read: Breast Cancer: Know the Risks, Recognise the Signs & Get Checked

Do young Indian women tend to develop aggressive cancers?

Indian cancer centers report significant shares of hormone receptor-negative, HER2-positive, and triple-negative breast cancers, as well as a more advanced stage of the disease at the time of diagnosis. Aggressive biological types among these subgroups might require aggressive therapy.

Nonetheless, it is critical not to generalize this information and apply it to all Indian women and breast cancers developed at a younger age. It may be questioned whether hospital-based studies reflect the whole population, as there is variation in tumour subtypes within the population.

Late diagnosis is one of the main problems. Poor awareness, fear and stigma, family obligations, financial constraints and delayed health-care visitation result in growth and spread of tumours before starting treatment. Young women may ignore a breast lump because they think that being young prevents them from developing breast cancer. It may be dangerous.

Should breast cancer screening start early in India?

The issue requires clarification between awareness, diagnosis and screening.

Breast awareness should start in early adulthood. Women should be aware of their normal breast condition and have an immediate medical check up if they find any changes such as a breast lump, nipple retraction, bleeding nipple discharge, skin dimpling and others, regardless of age. Suspicious change requires diagnosis rather than waiting until next screening examination.

In asymptomatic women, it is necessary to determine the ideal age and screening method according to Indian conditions. Mammography is well-known screening tool, ultrasound could assist in evaluating dense breast tissue in younger women. Both should not be over-used without proper medical evaluation. Women who have a robust family history or those carrying high-risk genes should have an earlier and more rigorous surveillance program.

What India requires is a systematic and risk-appropriate early detection program that includes public awareness, medical evaluation, screening, and treatment.

The bottom line is that breast cancer does not occur only among older patients. Early detection of symptoms and changes can make a difference in saving lives.

By Dr Sewanti Limaye, Director of Medical & Precision Oncology, Sir H. N. Reliance Foundation Hospital, Mumbai