Katherine’s story

My main symptom was overwhelming fatigue. I visited the GP a few times, but we ended up putting it down to a busy life. I was so tired; I dreaded social events because all I wanted to do was sleep.

Then on Good Friday 2014, I became extremely unwell with Quinzy, which is a throat abscesses. I had emergency surgery at midnight to remove them and my tonsils. The surgeon questioned me, saying I was very run down and that’s possibly why I had developed the abscesses.

When I finally got home from hospital, I had a massive bowel bleed. I knew something was really wrong. A colonoscopy later that week revealed Stage 3 bowel cancer, I was shocked. I was immediately booked in to have a bowel resection, followed by surgery for a port so that I could commence six months of chemotherapy.

It was a rough six months, chemo is really hard, but I was determined to see it through to the end to give me my best chance of surviving. I had a great team looking after me and I’m happy to report, I’m 10 years post end of chemo with no sign of cancer.

My one piece of advice:

You know your body better than anyone, if you feel something isn’t quite right, don’t give up on yourself, keep seeking answers.