Cervical Cancer: Amy Danielle Anderson Story

WOMENS AWARENESS 🎗

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I’ve thought long and hard about whether my battle with cancer should stay a private one, but if speaking out saves even just one person from what I’m going through right now then it’ll be worth it to me.

At 25 years old I have begun my battle with Cervical Cancer Stage 2b. My diagnosis came just three weeks before I was to have my first ever smear test.

It started with abnormal bleeding and blood clots – symptoms I just couldn’t ignore. At first, my symptoms weren’t taken seriously. I tried to book an appointment at my GP but was told that there wasn’t a need for an appointment as there ‘wasn’t anything to see’. I rang again and had to wait a month for an appointment. I was advised to take paracetamol and go to bed. I had been feeling tired for months, had lower back pains but it wasn’t until I lost a frightening amount of blood for the third time that I finally plucked up the courage to go to a hospital and can only praise the staff that dealt with me from that day. THANK YOU to the nurses who held my hand in the start of the scariest journey of my entire life.

My tumour is a whopping 6cm and the cancer has spread to my lymph nodes. Because my cancer is at an invasive stage the only option left for me is to undergo both chemo and radiotherapy at the same time. Some of the side effects of these are devastating and life changing. I’m not quite ready to put all of those into words.

I’ve had more needles in me than a pin cushion, more bloods taken than I can count. I’ve had scans and tests up to my ears. I’ve had to stop working as the hospital is now my second home. I’m currently fresh out of a surgery which I absolutely insisted on having. Although my stomach feels like it’s on fire my ovaries now have a new ‘hiding place’ from the radiation. There’s a chance this will prevent them from shutting down and has given me some hope and positivity to hold on to. I now have to look forward to many gruelling weeks of chemotherapy, external and internal radiation. This week alone I’m taking 7 daily medications. My whole life and reality has turned upside down in a matter of months, and my battle’s only really just starting.

I’m shouting this from the rooftops and to all the girls who are scared of the smear test this is for you! I hope that every one of you reading this will march into your doctors surgery armed and ready. And for every person reading this with the ‘this won’t happen to me’ mentality, please believe me at least one of you out there is wrong. If there’s one thing I’ve learned it’s that cancer doesn’t have any rules. It doesn’t care who you are. It isn’t waiting patiently for your 25th birthday. We need to catch this shit early. It’s so important to know that being on the combined pill for 5 or more years increases your risk of cervical cancer. I’d been on mine for 10 years and I didn’t know this. The HPV vaccine doesn’t mean you are safe to skip your smear, I had the vaccine! The symptoms of this type of cancer can be caused by many different things which are much less serious but if you’re body is telling you something then PLEASE listen to it. You know yourself better than anyone. Cancer is real and trust me it feels even realer when it becomes a fight for your own life. I’m fighting this with absolutely everything I’ve got. Cancer has started a war with me and it should be way more scared than I am. I refuse to let it wipe the smile off my face or take the spring from my step.

I’ve made this post simply for awareness. Abnormal bleeding should always be taken seriously. If you have any of these symptoms book an appointment with your doctor ASAP. Don’t take no for an answer. Don’t fear the smear. Pass the message on.

5 little things you should know …………………………………

1. Be kind. You never ever know the battles that people around you are going through
2. You only know how strong you really are until you absolutely have to be
3. The age for the smear test needs to be lowered
4. Mentality is everything
5. Fuck cancer

I plan on being a cancer survivor🎗

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#cervicalcancerawareness #igotthis #dontfearthesmear #cancerwarrior #kickingass #fuckcancer #ifcancerwasadayoftheweekitbemonday