Woman Self Diagnoses Ovarian Cancer Over The Internet

A 23-year-old woman has been given less than two years to live after her ovarian cancer went undiagnosed for months.

Sadie Rance first became unwell while travelling around Australia with her boyfriend in 2013 after suffering from excruciating stomach pains.

Upon her return to the UK in May 2013, the university graduate hadn’t been to the toilet in five weeks and went to her GP.

She was diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and given laxatives but was still in agony.

Over the next four months, Sadie returned to the doctor five times but all her blood tests and scans came back clear.

By this stage, the Bromley native was in such pain that she could only stand upright for a few minutes at a time.

‘In the end I said to my GP: “I'm not leaving here until you look at me and tell me I need to go to hospital”,’ recalls Sadie.

‘I couldn't take any more, I felt horrific and I couldn't even go to the supermarket without needing to sit down after five minutes because I was in so much agony.’

Finally, Sadie resorted to doing an online search of her symptoms in the hope that she might get an answer and she found that she had eight out of the nine symptoms of ovarian cancer.

‘When the doctors finally said it could be ovarian or bowel cancer, I thought it all made sense.’

She was diagnosed with stage four ovarian cancer in September 2014 when doctors found a tumour the size of a melon in her stomach.

Unfortunately, doctors could not remover the tumour as it had attached itself to Sadie’s internal organs.

It was during an investigative operation they also discovered the cancer had spread to her small bowel, liver, diaphragm, heart and lungs.

Although Sadie has been given between one to two years to live, she has responded well to chemotherapy and is determined not to lose her positive attitude: ‘I'm a very happy person and I'm determined to stay that way.’

Nine months after her diagnosis, Sadie’s boyfriend Jason proposed and the two were married in July 2014 on what she called “the best day of my life”.

The couple have raised over £35,000 for the Royal Marsden Hospital where Sadie has received treatment and the brave woman is determined to raise awareness of the risk ovarian cancer for young women.

‘The trouble I had was that ovarian cancer is very rare in people under 50, and the type I have is even more rare, so I don't think it was ever even something that was considered,’ explained Sadie.

‘I've met lots of young people aged 24 and under with cancer on my journey and there's a massive problem with young people being diagnosed in later stages because doctors don't believe it could be cancer.

‘I'd absolutely urge people to go the doctors and be persistent. When you know something's really wrong with your body you know and you need to make the doctor believe it.’

Sadie is also raising money for Teens Unite Fighting Cancer and is accepting donations from all around the world.

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