A Renfrew mum who has cancer fell ill with a serious infection which can cause the deadly sepsis disease, but it was her sister's instincts which saved her life.
Stephanie Thomson is currently receiving chemo for extra skeletal renal rhabdoid cancer and is under the care of the Beatson Cancer Unit in Glasgow.
The 33-year-old mum-of-one was urinating blood but wanted to go to bed and hoped it would go away.
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Her sister Michelle Fulton, 37, a mum-of-three, insisted she seek medical help on April 3, the Record reports.
After Stephanie, a hairdressing salon owner, called the Beatson Cancer Unit, she was admitted urgently. She was then diagnosed with a blood culture infection, which can cause sepsis.
Stephanie, from Elderslie, Renfrewshire, said: "Michelle just knew that something more serious was going on and wouldn't let up at me to pick up the phone and get myself checked out. I was feeling so tired and just wanted to sleep but she made it clear that she was going to keep nagging me until I did something.
"Because of her I got the help I needed, or goodness knows what the outcome could have been. It transpired that I had a serious infection, one that could quickly turn into sepsis, but because of Michelle, I had already been admitted to hospital, so the doctors could act right away.
"Infection in the blood cultures is a form of sepsis however they got antibiotics into me super fast which stopped it progressing. I was given two blood transfusions and I dread to think what might have happened if I didn't listen to her.
"It really is a warning to everyone that you shouldn't ignore anything around your health."
Stephanie, who is currently undergoing daily radiotherapy and regular chemo sessions, thanked staff who quickly spotted the issues in her blood cultures.
She said: "A day after being admitted I was hallucinating with spiking temperatures of 38.9C. I was being woken by doctors to be cooled down and looked after by the acute nursing team as my blood pressure and heart rate was through the roof.
"I was put on strong antibiotics, which have helped massively. I'm just so lucky I came to hospital when I did - and that was down to Michelle.
"Cancer patients obviously have a compromised immune system when going through treatment, so it is so important that people don't ignore anything at all. In my case what started out as a headache and fatigue turned into something extremely serious.
"Thankfully because of my sister I was in the right place to receive the care I required - and I'll always be thankful to her for that."
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