When Ellie Wilcock started experiencing pain in her abdomen at Christmas time in 2021, she chalked it up to being UTI-related.
"I was experiencing pelvic pain, and I thought that was more urinary pain," she said in a TikTok, where she has been documenting her journey. "Or something like that…It was because of the pelvic pain that doctors thought it was probably a UTI."
However, a quick trip to the GP revealed that was not the cause. Her blood test came back and showed that her inflammatory markers were high.
The pain only worsened before the then-25-year-old rushed herself to the emergency room in agony.
"I received an ultrasound in hospital. That scan revealed a 15cm mass growing on my ovary that doctors suspected to be an ovarian cyst," she said.
A biopsy revealed the truth was far worse. Ellie had stage four bowel cancer.
"The cancer had already spread to my peritoneum, my ovaries and also my liver."
It turns out that she was experiencing the pain in her pelvis because her cancer was so advanced that it "started to spread into [her] pelvis."
It was Valentine's Day 2022 and instead of a romantic evening, Ellie ended up in emergency surgery.
She underwent a procedure for an ileostomy stoma, where part of the small bowel is brought through your abdomen, and was sent home to recover.
"In that time, I got worse and worse, so I admitted myself to A&E for a third time and it was during my third admission I started emergency chemotherapy," the UK resident said.
"By this point, I wasn't really able to hold food down and the cancer itself had grown to 22 centimetres which is the size of a small watermelon."
Watch: Woman diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer at 25. Post continues below.
As the chemotherapy kicked in, Ellie felt her body fighting back.
She could hold food down and began to put back on the weight she had lost.
Eventually, she was told she could continue the rest of her treatment at home.
"I was originally told my chances of being cancer-free were very, very small," Ellie said.
"The chemotherapy worked so well for me that I was fortunate enough to receive an operation in December."
Surgeons were able to remove all of the cancer in her pelvis during a trip to London and then in January 2023, a liver albation targeted the final remaining cells in her liver.
Ellie finished her final round of chemotherapy in English summer of 2023 and ever since then, the scans have come back clear.
"I remember when I was a cancer patient in the early days I'd look for stories like mine to give me a boost and give me some hope so I'm hoping my story can do that," she said in a video.
Signs and symptoms.
Looking back now, Ellie says there were signs something more sinister was lurking.
"I would come home from work and I would just want to lie down and go to bed. I was really tired, I was really fatigued. Even sat at my desk I was so tired," she said.
In Australia, 15,531 people are told they have bowel cancer each year, including 1,716 people under the age of 50, according to Bowel Cancer Australia.
The disease claims the lives of 103 Australians a week.
Ellie wants others to be aware of the red-flag signs of bowel cancer.
"The earlier we can catch it, the better the survival rates, the more people are going to have a very straightforward time treating it," she said.
Her key warning signs to watch for are simple:
- fatigue
- changing bowel habits
- swelling or pain in the abdomen
- consistent blood in your poo
After 23 chemo cycles, five operations and countless scans, Ellie has come out the other side with a new lease on life.
These are the 27-year-old's five lessons she hopes others can live by
"Take each day as it comes. Worrying about the future will not change it," she said.
"Life is too short to worry about your dress size. Your body is your healer and your home. Be thankful for it.
"Live each day for yourself. Do the things you want to do, not what you feel you should be doing.
"You are your worst critic. Feel the feelings, allow them to wash over you, and try again tomorrow.
"This too shall pass. Things will be better in the end. And if they're not right now, it is not the end."
Mamamia has contacted Ellie for further comment.
Feature image: Instagram/@ellie_wilcock.
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