A Scottish woman who was diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome has told how she had been diagnosed with terminal cancer after begging for a scan.
Stacey Cochrane, says that she visited A&E twice and had several meetings with her GP after suffering from extreme abdominal pain over a span of two months during the summer.
It was not until she visited Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy on September 21 and she anxiously pleaded with medical professionals to give her a scan, that she was diagnosed with stomach cancer.
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The 37-year-old, who is married to Kenneth, told the Record : "I had been having problems with stomach pain for about five years without ever really knowing what the issue was. But it got so bad this year that I was admitted to A&E on August 6.
"I was checked over and given some morphine. Four hour later, I was told I was ok to home.
"I was going on holiday that week, so I asked if I was definitely fit to fly, but they gave me the all-clear and said just to keep away from dairy products. Then I was poorly the whole five days we were in Bulgaria with severe diarrhoea and vomiting."
The Cowdenbeath based woman said that after several appointments with the doctor and a couple of A&E trips, the GP had told her on August 26 that her symptoms were linked to IBS.
She added: "The GP assured me he was 100% certain that it was IBS, but I do remember asking how he could know that for certain without a scan.
"Then on September 21 I ended up phoning 999 through the night with more stomach pain and vomiting. A paramedic came out to the house and then admitted me to hospital.
"By now knew something was seriously wrong. I couldn't even keep water down. So I literally begged for a CT scan.
"Later that night, I was diagnosed with cancer."
Tragically, Stacey was diagnosed with stage four stomach cancer that had spread to her ovaries. She was found to have two tumours that measured at 22cm and 15am that were found on her left ovary - these were putting pressure on her stomach causing her pain.
She was then given the heartbreaking news on November 3 that her cancer was not able to be cured. Since then she has undergone chemotherapy treatment.
Stacey continued: "It may sound strange but it was actually a relief to get a diagnosis because I just wanted to know what was wrong.
"But then they told me it was incurable and at the moment they can't give me a timeframe on how long I will live.
"Now I just want to speaking up and tell people they need to listen to their own bodies. Don't give up if you know something is wrong.
"If saying that means I can maybe save someone else's life, it's worth it."
Stacey has made a complaint to NHS Fife.
She added: "The staff are trying their best but the NHS is not getting enough funding."
NHS Fife Director of Nursing, Janette Keenan, said: “Being given a diagnosis of cancer is incredibly distressing news, not just for the individual but for their families and loved ones as well.
“Unfortunately, for reasons of patient confidentiality we are unable to discuss the care of individual people, however, we would urge the person to get in touch with our patient relations team to discuss their care and explore any concerns they may have.”
A fundraiser has been set up to help Stacey and Kenneth in the months ahead here.
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