One woman has shared her symptoms she had that led to a devastating bowel cancer diagnosis – as doctors thought she just had a urinary tract infection due to only being 25-years-old
A woman who was given the devastating news she had bowel cancer after mistaking her symptoms for a UTI has one urgent message for anyone suffering with stomach pains.
At just 25, Ellie Wilcock was given the news she never thought she’d hear – that she had stage four bowel cancer. The most serious of grade of cancer, which has spread across her body. Ellie, from Peterborough, had sharp pains along one side of her abdomen and sudden bouts of fatigue but blamed it on a urinary tract infection. Doctors believed because her agonising pain was in just one side of her abdomen and pelvis it was a problem with her reproductive system – while others assumed it was an ovarian cyst. However it was cancer, and is becoming much more common in people under 50.
Ellie has taken to social media to share the important message to others about the early warning signs she had before she was diagnosed. “It [the pain] was in my left hand side. It was because the tumour was obstructing my large bowel. I thought it was more like urinary pain… doctors thought it was a UTI,” she said in a TikTok video, seen over 400,000 times. In a separate clip, Ellie said some of the doctors thought it was an ovarian cyst, but said she had symptoms that were more commonly associated with bowel cancer rather than a cycst. She explained how she noticed a change in bowel habits, having both diarrhoea and constipation.
Ellie shared: “For me, it was a constant change between the two but it just wasn’t normal for me, and fatigue. I would come home from work and just want to lie down and go to bed. I was really tired, I was really fatigued. Even sat at my desk, I was falling asleep I was so tired.”
She then noticed blood in her stool which is another key sign. She said: “At the time I didn’t think I had this but on reflection I did and just didn’t notice it. This could be a range of colours, it could be bright red or a dark red. But anything that isn’t normal for you and you’ve noticed consistent blood in your poo then get it checked out. It is nothing to be embarrassed about. The sooner you look at it, the sooner you get it out the way.” The NHS say that anyone experiencing symptoms for three weeks or more should speak to their GP. While many of the symptoms can be caused by issues such as irritable bowel syndrome, it’s always important to get checked.
Ellie first went to her doctor in April 2022, and a test for a UTI came back negative, but blood test results showed there was some inflammation. She was then booked in for an ultrasound as it was thought she had an ovarian cyst, but as her pain started to get worse, she took herself to A&E where she then found out the devastating news.
She then found out the cancer had spread to her liver, ovaries and peritoneum – the membrane that holds the organs in the abdomen. After multiple surgeries, Ellie was told in August there was no more evidence of the disease. Ellie said in her latest TikTok video: “I always say cancer can happen to anyone, it doesn’t discriminate. It is just a bulldozer that moves into people’s lives and it fills waiting rooms with people, all with their own stories, their own families fighting this horrible disease,” and urged people to get checked out straight away if they have symptoms.
Bowel cancer cases have risen in people under 50, which has confused doctors. The NHS website shared some of the most common symptoms which include:
- changes in your poo, such as having softer poo, diarrhoea or constipation that is not usual for you
- needing to poo more or less often than usual for you
- blood in your poo, which may look red or black
- bleeding from your bottom
- often feeling like you need to poo, even if you’ve just been to the toilet
- tummy pain
- a lump in your tummy
- bloating
- losing weight without trying
- feeling very tired for no reason
Bowel cancer can cause anaemia (when you have fewer red blood cells than usual), which can make you feel very tired, short of breath and have headaches.
Do you have a story to share? Email niamh.kirk@reachplc.com
