Runner Spends 8 Hours in the ER After Being ‘Misdiagnosed’ with Shingles, Is Shocked by Real Diagnosis

In October 2024, when he was just 25, James Cashen was diagnosed with shingles while visiting his girlfriend in Salt Lake City.

Cashen, an avid runner, was training for the New York City Marathon when he noticed a painful rash.

“I got chickenpox as a child, and it’s common to develop shingles as an adult because the virus stays in your nerve cells and can reactivate later,” Cashen told PEOPLE.

A doctor explained that the physical stress from his training likely triggered the outbreak. He was prescribed antivirals, and the rash cleared up after a few weeks.

By August 2025, now 26, Cashen saw another rash after finishing a 16-mile run in Woodstock, New York.

“It showed up on the back of my leg, and I first thought it was just irritation from sweat and heat,” he said. “It was itchy and irritated, but I assumed it was from the sun and workouts.”

Because it looked so much like his first shingles outbreak, Cashen thought it was happening again. His doctor prescribed antivirals.

But after 10 days, the rash kept spreading, and blisters appeared on his hands. “I couldn’t understand why the medicine wasn’t working,” he recalled.

Worried, he returned to his doctor, who immediately sent him to the ER for IV antiviral treatment. Cashen wasn’t thrilled about the hospital trip but recognized it might be necessary.

At the ER, he expected quick answers, but nearly eight hours passed before an infectious disease doctor and his team arrived. “By then, I had been in a glass ER room with an IV in my arm all day,” he said.

Doctors quickly questioned whether it was shingles. “I don’t think that’s shingles,” one physician told him — a sentiment echoed by others.

When he was moved into a quarantine room, Cashen found the situation almost absurd. Staff walking by referred to him as “the shingles guy,” which he found oddly funny. Even the infectious disease team apologized for showing up in full protective gear.

The lead doctor soon told Cashen he was almost certain it wasn’t shingles but a skin condition that a dermatologist could diagnose. He made sure Cashen had an appointment scheduled for the next day before discharging him.

At the dermatologist’s office, the mystery was solved: the rash was eczema. Cashen was prescribed a topical steroid, and the symptoms cleared quickly.

Still, the diagnosis came with financial stress. He has already received two $500 bills for doctor visits and expects more from the ER. “I’m going to fight the bills, but I know I’ll probably blow past my deductible,” he said.

Despite the ordeal, he managed to laugh about it: “At least I won’t have to pay for any more medical expenses this year.”

Cashen also felt grateful that his doctors took his concerns seriously. “A lot of people with worse conditions aren’t treated that way,” he said.

After sharing his story on TikTok, he learned he wasn’t alone — “the shingles-to-eczema pipeline is a lot more common than I thought.”

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