When Rosie Hindmarsh's mum died unexpectedly last summer, she thought that her stomach issues were a symptom of grief. But soon her world was "flipped" when doctors diagnosed her with a rare cancer.
Rosie was enduring abdominal pains, loose bowels, severe sweats and had lost just under a stone within less than a week. Because it coincided with her mum's death a year ago, she put it down to bereavement when friends showed their concern.
But things got worse, so Rosie went to see a doctor. That was seven weeks ago and was followed by tests and procedures, including an MRI scan. She was then told she needed her appendix and lower bowel removed due to it being extremely thickened, reports CornwallLive.
The report after her first operation, which studied tissues and cells, showed that she had late stage neuroendocrine carcinoid tumours. Neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) are rare tumours of the neuroendocrine system, which produces hormones. They can be cancerous or non-cancerous, according to the NHS website.
The tumour usually grows in the bowels or appendix, but it can also be found in the stomach, pancreas, lung, breast, kidney, ovaries or testicles - and it tends to grow very slowly. These tumours are sometimes referred to as carcinoid tumours, particularly when they affect the small bowel, large bowel or appendix.
The 31-year-old mum, who lives in Liskeard, Cornwall, has since had three quarters of her bowel removed and is now waiting for the biopsy results. She will also need to see how her body heals before deciding on the option of having a full removal of her bowel and living with a stoma bag. Rosie said it had been an incredibly "overwhelming" few weeks since her diagnosis and she was finding her painful recovery challenging.
She said: "I was completely shocked when I found out the diagnosis. I initially had a full abdominal MRI and they thought (my symptoms) were to do with my appendix, so I thought that I had appendicitis or something like that.
"After I had my appendix taken out, they found out it was actually my bowel and I had a letter to say I needed to go to the colorectal surgery. I had no idea why, so I just went in on my own and then I was told I had a late stage cancer, without having the support of my husband or family there with me.
"It's been really overwhelming and I stress about the fact that it's a rare tumour. The operation went well, but the healing time is very long and painful. I'm a positive person though, so mental health wise, I'm doing OK. I have two young children who I need to take care of, so at the moment, I'm just taking each day as it comes."
Rosie is now trying to raise more awareness of the cancer and is encouraging people to get any symptoms they are concerned about checked out and not to ignore them like she did.
She said: "I've had symptoms since 2019 and I was passed from pillar to post. Before the pandemic it got worse and I wasn't doing well.
"I was extremely fatigued and when I went to the doctor, it was suggested that I was going through perimenopause at 29 years old. Then the pandemic hit and I felt like I didn't want to waste anyone's time by going back to the doctors. But then around 11 months ago, my symptoms started to get worse and I had a sort of heart murmur, which I put down to the stress and anxiety of losing my mum.
"Since I've had my tumour removed, the heart murmurs have stopped and my severe sweats have stopped. It's scary to think that it's because my body was essentially going into overdrive and it's crazy that women are quite easily put into brackets where our symptoms are put down to hormones or the menopause.
"It's important to stress that you shouldn't bypass the small things. Write down your symptoms and get them checked out if you're concerned, because you are never a bother. You know your body better than anyone else and you know what's right and wrong."
Rosie's cousin, Cheryl Chapman, has now set up a GoFundMe page to help raise some money to support Rosie and her husband while Rosie is unable to work during her treatment. It has already smashed its £500 target.
Cheryl said: "[The diagnosis] has hit hard and they've had their world flipped upside down. As a young family they have bills to pay and a young family to keep entertained, which is difficult when they are on one wage. So, I am looking to raise some pennies to help them out in anyway they need, whether that be helping with bills or treating their gorgeous children to a day out. Please help me to help them."
Rosie said she was grateful for the support she has received so far but feels that it is more important for her to be able to raise awareness. "The GoFundMe my cousin set up was lovely and it will help with our mortgage and other things," she said. "But for me, it's more about raising awareness.
"It's scary how easily these things can be misdiagnosed and people have died from this cancer. I can't stress enough that you're never a nuisance when trying to get help because that's what I thought and it could have been caught in 2019 and I wouldn't have had to go through all the symptoms."
