Mum, 62, who put symptoms on family trip down to old age given shock cancer diagnosis
dailyrecord.co.ukA mum was shocked to learn of a colon cancer diagnosis after previously putting her symptoms down to old age. Sally Nelson, 62, completed a bowel screening kit just one month before a colonoscopy and is now pushing for others to get checked out.During a holiday visiting family in 2021 the mum, from Newtownwards, County Down, suffered symptoms of exhaustion and loss of breath.
Sally nearly fainted before booking a GP appointment upon her return home as her symptoms worsened, reports the Mirror.Blood tests revealed she had a lower blood count than normal and was 'extremely' anaemic before being prescribed tablets.
Sally was then referred for colon CT scan in January 2022 after her scheduled colonoscopy took place at Downe Hospital in Downpatrick.The tests revealed a tumour on the right hand side of her colon which doctors rushed to remove immediately as she underwent surgery in Ulster Hospital a few weeks later."I made sure to get plenty of rest and was advised to not lift anything for four to six weeks," she told Belfast Live."It took me a few months before I started to feel a bit more normal again.
The practice nurses were on hand if I needed any support and I could contact them if I felt I had any worries."I was required to have four sessions of chemotherapy and I knew I had to have these sessions to help me get better.
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