Interview 100
Ovarian cancer diagnosed in 1991 following night sweats. Treated by surgical removal of the affected ovary followed by chemotherapy.
She first realised something was wrong when she started suffering from night sweats. She made an appointment with her doctor who said that it was likely to just be hormonal and that she shouldn’t worry about it. She carried on as usual for some time but found that her night sweats got progressively worse and unbearable. She decided to go back to the doctor’s, where a locum doctor carried out an internal examination and came across a large cyst that would need to be removed. She was referred to hospital for an operation where they removed the cyst and an ovary, and conducted a biopsy. She was asked to phone the hospital to receive her results and realised then that there was a problem. The test results revealed that the cyst was malignant and it was recommended that she undergo chemotherapy. It was a bit of a blow;, as they had reassured her that everything should be fine and that it was unlikely that there should be a problem. In hindsight she feels angry that her doctor had dismissed her concerns as hormonal issues and had not referred her sooner. She found the recovery from the operation straightforward, and that it did not affect her fertility.
She had 4 sessions of chemotherapy. She had initially felt sick after her early chemotherapy treatments but felt fine in later ones. She found that having ovarian cancer didn’t change her lifestyle despite the emotional drain. She continued to work and remained fairly active. She explained that she had been able to go on a walking holiday between her third and fourth treatment, and had continued working as well as starting a Master of Arts degree. By her fourth treatment chemotherapy had impaired her immune system, so the risks were outweighing the benefits and the treatment was stopped. Unfortunately she developed meningitis after chemotherapy damaged her immune system. She lost a lot of weight and found that it weakened her significantly. She characterised cancer as an emotional disease rather than a physical one. She found post-treatment period difficult. She felt more isolated out of the hospital environment and that she had more time to come to terms with her experience, which she found emotionally draining.
She had initially found follow up appointments difficult and intense, and disliked waiting for the results. She soon found that life went on and that scans happened less frequently. She began to feel more optimistic about her future and that everything would be alright. She decided to be open with everyone about it because she felt it was better to be flippant about these things rather than bottling it up. She found her family were a great support and found comfort in good friends. She also joined a support group in the local area, which she found really helpful. She explained that it was just useful to have friends around and have people that you know that you can talk to about your cancer.
She has a positive view of the future and looks forward to having great new adventures. She believes that it is important to not let health professionals take charge of you, actively seek information and ask questions, and don’t be afraid to demand answers from them. She felt that she could have benefitted from more advice on how to cope with her illness from the hospital staff. She had found her experience of cancer was rushed and quick, and that she was very much on her own once she had been treated. She found that complementary therapies were useful in minimising and managing the side effects of treatment. Her message to others is to stay positive and talk to people who have been through the same thing and survived.