My long awaited first baby was born in September 2022. His father and I were so excited to have this precious addition to our family and start a whole new chapter in our lives. The first year with Benjamin was such a love bubble for us as he was such an easy and happy baby.
While, in hindsight, I had some symptoms, nothing was too out of the ordinary. I put fatigue down to being a new mum in my 40s; my upset tummy to a possible gluten allergy; and the little bit of blood in my stool to haemorrhoids.
I finally saw my GP who also was not alarmed by these symptoms but sent me to a specialist for a colonoscopy “just in case”. With no history of cancer or bowel issues in my family I had not even considered cancer as a possible outcome.
So, you can imagine my shock when, after the happiest year of my life, I was told I had bowel cancer. It was my son Benjamin’s first birthday the day before.
Next came a whirlwind of scans and tests and an official diagnosis of Stage 4 bowel cancer, as it had spread to my lungs and liver.
Being told I needed to start chemotherapy as soon as possible, or I would — nor could — be dead within six to 12 months was a dark day.
Considering I looked and felt healthy, it was hard for my husband and I to wrap our minds around the situation. Thoughts of my son growing up without a mother echoed through my brain on many a late night.
Less than four weeks from my initial colonoscopy I started my first round of chemotherapy.
Six months later, I am now coming to the end of my treatment, and I have been incredibly lucky that my cancer has been incredibly responsive to the chemotherapy.
I can now dare to look forward to a future I thought had been taken from me completely. Though I am grateful, I also feel incredibly robbed by this insidious cancer.
It has taken away my ability to grow my family; caused a huge amount of stress on my loved ones; and it has placed a fear in my soul that it may return that I doubt I will ever be able to shake. I want to share my story as I do not want another person to have to face these fears — especially mums. There is a rise of women during or just after pregnancy being diagnosed with advanced bowel cancer as research shows “the presenting features of bowel cancer can overlap with those of pregnancy itself, there is a risk of development of advanced disease, with poorer prognosis at diagnosis.”
1 in 15 Aussie women will develop bowel cancer in their lifetime. Bowel cancer is the third deadliest cancer in women, claiming 2,512 lives each year. Early detection is the key and no symptom is too small to be checked.
Remember you are never too young for bowel cancer.
My one piece of advice for others: Anyone under the age of 50 should be asking for a colonoscopy every few years. Early detection is key.