An NHS nurse who spent years working with bowel cancer patients has said her experience with the disease was a “blessing and a curse” as she then found herself on the other side of the healthcare system after being diagnosed with stage one bowel cancer and undergoing surgery to remove part of her intestine.
“At the same time, I was able to advocate for myself and I knew the questions to ask. It was bizarre, a very surreal experience.” Despite fears that it could be cancer, biopsy results came back negative and it was believed that Natalie had an inflamed appendix. The mum had her appendix removed in July 2020 but, after being discharged, she still felt that “something wasn’t right”.
This time, Natalie’s tests came back positive for cancer and she was sat down to be told the news of her diagnosis – stage one bowel cancer. As the cancer had not spread, surgery to have part of her bowel removed was suggested as the best treatment option. After recovering in hospital for five days, Natalie was discharged to recuperate at home. She said: “While they cannot guarantee that all of the cancer was removed, they were happy with the results and I didn’t need any further treatment.”
Now, Natalie is focusing on making memories with her family after receiving the all-clear and has booked to spend Christmas in the Maldives. She said: “We’re going away this Christmas which we’ve never done before so it will be different but the girls are so excited and it’s made up for the past couple of years.