A mum from Bromley who is living with stage three ovarian cancer says early diagnosis can help towards a “better chance of survival”.

In March 2015, Susannah began to feel discomfort in her stomach, and she headed to her GP for reassurance about her symptoms.

She was initially told that her symptoms could be irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and she was prescribed medicine.

Unfortunately, the symptoms did not pass, and the pain moved to Susannah’s lower abdomen.

Susannah told the News Shopper: “The pain felt similarly to when I was pregnant with my first child – a time when I found out I had fibroids.

“I noticed it felt as if there was some sort of lump in my abdomen, but I still thought it was linked to the fibroids.”

The GP referred Susannah for a scan in June 2015, and she says she had to wait for almost a month to be seen.

Latest research by Target Ovarian Cancer has revealed that 26 percent of women with ovarian cancer symptoms had three or more appointments with their GP before they were referred for tests.

Susannah’s scan date was booked for the end of August, and after going for her scan, the doctor informed Susannah that they could see lymph nodes.

Susannah added: “I still didn’t think there were any red flags, but within two days, I had a call from my GP that the scan results had revealed there was a mass and I needed to be referred to the hospital for further tests.

“This was when I began to worry – I didn’t think it would be ovarian cancer, as I was up to date with my smear tests.

“But I was referred to the hospital for blood tests, scans, and appointments in early September.”

On October 2, 2015, Susannah was told she needed to go into the hospital for the results, and due to her concerns, she brought her husband to the appointment with her.

The tests and scans found that the symptoms were in fact high risk of ovarian cancer.

Susannah said: “This was when the penny dropped.

“It was as if someone had pressed the fast forward button, and I was told I had to have surgery as soon as possible.”

During her first round of surgeries, Susannah was informed that due to her young age of 38, she should have a genetic test for cancer.

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Tests found that she had the ‘BRCA One’ gene mutation, which meant Susannah was high risk of breast and ovarian cancer.

Susannah said: “It was quite likely my mum had ovarian or breast cancer too.

“My younger sister was diagnosed with breast cancer at the same time I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, and she sadly passed away in 2017.”

In early 2016, Susannah had extensive surgery with a radical hysterectomy, which she suffered complications from and needed two further surgeries.

Between February 2016 to June 2016, Susannah had six cycles of chemotherapy and she was told it would hopefully prevent further reoccurrence.

After Susannah just being on active surveillance and having monthly check-ups for four years, she was told her bloods were doubled, and she had a recurrence in February 2020.

Susannah told the News Shopper: “By August 2020, I had to have another surgery, and then chemo, because my bloods were rising.

“The thought that it had come back was so scary and traumatic.

“I then was given targeted therapy to prevent further reoccurrence.

“In September 2021 I found a lump in my breast, which later revealed to be cancerous and I needed radiotherapy – but I am hoping this is fine now.”

Now, Susannah is clear of breast cancer, but her ovarian cancer is currently being “controlled” at stage three.

News Shopper:

In support of Target Ovarian Cancer this International Women’s Day, Susannah expressed to the News Shopper that early diagnosis gives a “better chance of survival”, as she says if she was diagnosed earlier, she potentially wouldn’t be at stage 3.

She said “Early diagnosis helps to improve the outcomes of treatments, because for people who are diagnosed at a later stage, you might find that it has spread and there's not much in terms of treatment options that they can actually have.

“So early diagnosis is much better than having a diagnosis at a later stage.

“I'm thankful that you know, even though my diagnosis of ovarian cancer was at stage three, having had surgery they were able to get out everything and even though unfortunately came back, at least I'm still in a good place now because it has been well contained and controlled.”