A cancer survivor, who experienced severe vaginal bleeding which felt like “somebody had just popped a balloon” before she underwent treatment to remove a large vascular tumour in her cervix, says a cervical cancer diagnosis is “not a death sentence”. Joanne Painter was diagnosed with stage 2 cervical cancer when she was 38, after noticing unusual vaginal discharge and then experiencing abnormal, heavy bleeding for several months.
The now 43-year-old said she was repeatedly told by doctors that they were not concerned and was initially misdiagnosed as having a cervical ectropion – when cells from inside the cervical canal grow onto the outside of the cervix. But Joanne knew her symptoms should not be ignored.
After pushing for a diagnosis, in February 2018, Joanne received the news she had cervical cancer and said she was “dumbfounded". But now, as a survivor looking back on the last five years, Joanne wants to raise awareness of the importance of early detection and “remaining positive”.
