Lauren's lymphoma story
Lauren was 5 months pregnant with her second son when she found a lump in her neck on her jaw line. Having worked in skin care and as someone who knows her body, this didn’t seem right. She also had a lump with a rather large hole in her throat which was very sore and painful.
She did completely the right thing and went to see her GP several times. She was told that it was likely to be nothing to worry about. However, the lump got bigger, the side of her face was swollen and her throat soreness continued.
She had her baby and four weeks later was in horrendous pain with her throat and could not eat or swallow. This time she was told to go to dentists, who took a tooth out which might have been causing the issue, but was still in pain and was given antibiotics.
She then happened to be in the GP surgery for her little boy and she was chatting with the receptionist who had been aware of her throat pain. She advised speaking to a new GP in the surgery, and so Lauren set up an appointment.
Immediately, she was referred to Ears, Nose and Throat at Homerton. However, they initially didn’t think anything was seriously wrong.
That had been in July and, by November, Lauren started to feel really unwell; she couldn’t swallow, her throat was swollen, severe sweats at night, and the lump was getting bigger. She looked up her symptoms and these seemed to suggest it could be Lymphoma.
Diagnosis
She went back to her GP, who was very helpful and referred her again for tests this time on the cancer care pathway. She went for these in January at Homerton. They were horrified at state of throat and wanted Lauren to have treatment as quickly as possible.
She was told she had to go to another hospital as operation requirement was too big. She had an MRI scan at Royal London Hospital and two more lumps were found and she then had a biopsy.
She then received an urgent phone call with the news that she did have Lymphoma, and she was put in touch with a MacMillan nurse.
Treatment
The phone call to say she had cancer was urgent and needed to be done straightway (rather than an appointment) due to the need to have treatment immediately. Lauren was told to expect calls and appointments with St Bartholomew’s Hospital, where she would be receiving her treatment.
Within days, she had an appointment at St Bartholomew’s and had a PET scan. The cancer was bigger than they had previously thought and was Stage 2.
She was initially told to expect three rounds of chemotherapy, but this was increased by another three rounds, which was incredibly hard and painful. However, she received excellent care at St Bartholomew’s and has since recovered. She is going back for her first six monthly appointment with her oncologist.
Recovery
Looking back, Lauren can’t believe how much pain she was in and how she was able to get through this.
At the same time, she had two young children to deal with and was starting treatment around the time of her son’s first birthday, as well as having another young son aged three and a half.
She had a couple of visits to Whipps Cross Hospital – her nearest one - where she was kept in to recover.
In spite of her incredible bravery – or maybe as a result of her bravery! - Lauren did not speak to many people about her cancer diagnosis and treatment. Instead, she carried on doing the school runs and getting on with life, not wanting additional sympathy.
Key lessons
Lauren’s story highlights the following challenges:
Diagnosing certain types of cancer, especially when symptoms are when the patient is pregnant. Is there a training requirement here?
Knowing your own body and when, if something doesn’t seem right, to do something about it. This includes repeat visits if at first you are told everything is ok. If the symptoms, continue, change or worsen then you need to go back to your GP.
Dealing with treatment when you have young children – additional pressures on time, as well as mental and physical health and wellbeing.
Recognising night sweats are a key symptom – should there be more awareness of these as a cancer sign?
Knowing how and where to find information about Lymphoma and treatment, including conditions post-treatment
More information
For more information about lymphoma, visit https://lymphoma-action.org.uk/ or https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/lymphoma
Visit Macmillan Cancer Support for further information about treatment and support for lymphoma patients: https://www.macmillan.org.uk/cancer-information-and-support/lymphoma