I wanted to share my story with you lovely ladies as you have all been so supportive, and so ladies just starting out on the cc roller coaster can hopefully see there can be light at the end of the tunnel…
I had always attended cervical screening (smear) appointments when required and the results were always clear. It was only because I went to my GP with symptoms that I thought were related to something else (which only started in September 2015 just after my 32nd birthday) that I was referred to the local hospital for further investigations at the start of November 2015. I had a colposcopy examination where biopsies were also taken and was told that they were being marked as urgent and that I had to return the following week for the results.
On Wednesday 25th November I was told I had cancer and referred to the specialist oncology centre in my area for further tests to determine the staging. It also transpired that my tumour was adenosquamous which doesn’t always show up on the normal screening from what I understand, so I am lucky that I went to the GP when I did and that it was caught early.
I was given a preliminary staging of 1b2 and told a total radical hysterectomy with removal of ovaries and lymph nodes was my best option. Obviously this was a lot to take in, as it meant I wouldn’t be able to have any more children naturally, and so I consider myself extremely lucky to have my 2 yr old daughter.
After a lovely Christmas and quiet New Year, on Wednesday 6th January 2016 I underwent the operation and then had to wait until today, Tuesday 19th January to find out whether there was any further cancer in anything they removed.
Fortunately all 23 lymph nodes that they removed were negative for cancer, I was restaged to 1b1 and told I don’t need any further treatment at this time. Now I can concentrate on recovering from the operation and getting back up to full strength so life can return to ‘normal’.
I know I’ve still got a way to go, and that I’ll have good days as well as bad days but this whole experience has really made me re-evaluate what is important to me and how I want to live my life going forward. I’m hoping to get involved with my local support group and with raising awareness about the importance of cervical screening.
I just wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who has read and or replied to my posts, your responses really did get me through some tough times when it felt nobody else really understood what I was experiencing.
Take care everyone and stay strong.
x
