Woman diagnosed with bladder cancer aged 27 – 30 years younger than average age | UK | News
Woman diagnosed with bladder cancer aged 27 – 30 years younger than average age | UK | News
Aged just 27, Abbie Jarvis was diagnosed with . Most people who get this kind of cancer are in their sixties.
Ms Jarvis found out she had the cancer after a scan showed there was a tumour in her bladder.
Before her diagnosis, she struggled with different symptoms, including severe pain in her pelvic area which made it hard for her to walk.
Even though she went to A&E three times, the doctors couldn’t figure out what was wrong, reports Wales Online.
She got her diagnosis after having a cystoscopy – a procedure that looks inside the bladder to check for any problems.
She said: « They told me my biopsy had come back and that I had a tumour. I didn’t take it in for a second, I just felt numb and didn’t say anything – my eyes were just filling up. »
It was tough for her to understand what was happening, especially because she was alone at that time. The nurse tried to explain everything to her but it still didn’t make sense.
Ms Jarvis, from Warrington, Cheshire, had to visit her GP and A&E multiple times with symptoms like frequent urination and blood in her urine before she was diagnosed with cancer.
She said: « I went to my doctors around four times in October and then I went to A&E around three times in November – I went through all the emotions. »
Initially, doctors suggested she might have an overactive bladder or painful bladder syndrome.
She explained her frustration, saying, « I went and said I had a pain down below and then they either think it’s water infection or something else that they will think of first. Especially with my age, I think they just think other things. »
In the past, Ms Jarvis had issues with UTIs and kidney infections, leading to surgery in 2019 to stretch her urethra. Doctors now believe this could be linked to her tumour.
She recounted what the doctors told her: « Sometimes having a UTI can change the cells in your bladder but they aren’t 100 percent sure that’s what caused it. I don’t come into contact with harmful chemicals, which is another reason people get it, so they’ve said it could be from the UTIs. »
Despite the uncertainty, she accepts her situation. She said: « It’s just one of those things. »
Ms Jarvis is undergoing BCG treatment now, directly administered into the bladder to make the immune system target cancer cells. She possibly faces additional treatments or a bladder removal surgery in the future, depending on her response to current treatment.
She said: « They’ve said it’s not spread and has confined to my bladder, which was a big relief. Because it’s not spreading, then I felt like I had a bit of time to try the BCG treatment.
« If it was spreading, they would be taking my bladder out anyway so they said to just try it and that we can always stop after the first one or two. If they just took my bladder out, then I would always be thinking ‘what if we had tried it and it worked? ‘ ».
« I feel like it’s gone really well but I won’t really know anything until June. I could feel fine and then they say it’s not really worked for me. »
Meanwhile, she hopes to bring attention to the signs of , given that it’s mostly diagnosed in individuals aged 60 and above.
She has become a member of a Facebook support group, where she happens to be the youngest member, with most others in their sixties.
She said: « When I was diagnosed, the nurse was really shocked because it’s really rare – I think I was the youngest person who she helps treat. I think it’s more common in people over the age of 60 and in men. »
Her friends are taking part in the Great Manchester 10k in May to raise funds for Action Bladder Cancer UK. To donate visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/5ep7c-kicking-cancers-ass.
Cet article est apparu en premier en ANGLAIS sur https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1878769/woman-diagnosed-bladder-cancer-aged-27-30-years-younger-than-average-age
