A MUM says doctors fobbed off worrying symptoms as “heartburn” nine times, before she was given just 12 months to live.
Georgia Gardiner began experiencing sickness and stomach cramps out the blue last summer, and was prescribed acid reflux medication by her GP.
Georgia Gardiner, 28, began feeling unwell in summer last year[/caption]
She was unable to keep food down and had stomach pain but doctors told her it was acid reflux[/caption]
After visiting the GP several times, she was eventually referred for a scan which revealed she had cancer[/caption]
But the 28-year-old’s symptoms got worse and she dropped nearly three stone in a matter of months as she couldn’t keep food down.
Concerned about her deteriorating health, the mum-of-one said she visited doctors at her GP practice and hospital “six to nine times” to determine the cause of her symptoms.
But Georgia claims she kept getting told it was related to acid reflux or heartburn and advised to continue with her tablets.
After months of traipsing back and forth to her GP and hospital, Georgia was eventually referred down a non-specific symptoms pathway where she was given an endoscopy.
The results revealed evidence of cancer and further testing confirmed Georgia had a rare and aggressive form of stomach cancer, which is incurable.
Stunned, Georgia was told she may have just 12 months to live. Any further treatment would go towards improving her quality of life.
Now, Georgia is determined to fight the disease “in every way possible” while creating memories with her two-year-old son Arlo.
The mum, from Leeds, West Yorkshire, said: “Last year in the summertime I was being sick quite a lot. I couldn’t keep food down and lost my appetite completely.
“I could only eat small amounts. I love food, I’m a massive foodie. My body was just rejecting everything.
“Then I was experiencing pains in my upper stomach. It was really intense, it was a sharp constant pain.
“I rang the doctors to get an idea about what was going on. They gave me an appointment after four weeks of waiting and gave me some anti-acid reflux medication, then sent me home.”
As Georgia’s symptoms worsened, the mum said she visited doctors at her GP and hospital multiple times to try and find the cause of her mysterious illness.
Months later, after a GP referral for further testing, Georgia had an endoscopy that revealed evidence of cancer.
On June 13 this year, Georgia was told she had linitis plastica, a rare type of adenocarcinoma that starts in the glands that line your organs.
Georgia with her fiancee Callum Scott, 25[/caption]
This had also spread to her lymph nodes and into other parts of her internal organs.
Georgia, who was due to start a business management course before her diagnosis, said: “After the first appointment, we were full of hope that they could just remove it.
“Then when they said it was incurable, I went into a complete shock state.
“I didn’t speak or leave the house for three days, my whole world just crumbled around me.
The thing that breaks me is how much I’m going to miss out on in Arlo’s life. He’s everything to me – he gives my life purpose
Georgia
“They don’t understand where this has come from. None of my immediate family have cancer and this type of cancer usually affects 70 to 80 year olds.
“I said, ‘am I going to die? I can’t die, I have a two-year-old son’. My fiance Callum just went green.
“I asked ‘older people that get this, how long do they live?’ And he said roughly 12 months. It doesn’t feel real, it’s an out-of-body experience.
“I feel physically fine. I was fit and healthy. It’s just baffling.”
‘Wasn’t taken seriously’
Keen horse rider Georgia said she feels angry that her symptoms weren’t taken seriously by health professionals – and is urging others to always push doctors with any concerns.
Georgia said: “That doctor who referred me has given me a fighting chance rather than it just creeping up on me.
“I just wasn’t taken seriously, kept given [medication] and told it was acid reflux or heartburn and related to that, but it wasn’t.
“The kind of cancer I’ve got goes from stage one to four in a matter of months.
“I get angry sometimes because I think if I’d been taken seriously and they’d caught it before it had spread, then maybe we could’ve done more to prevent it getting to the stage it’s at now.
“I never thought I would have cancer, I’m 28, I thought I was invincible.
What is linitis plastica?
Linitis plastica is a rare type of adenocarcinoma.
Adenocarcinomas are cancers that develop in gland cells, which make mucus and stomach juices.
Linitis plastica spreads to the muscles of the stomach wall and makes it thicker and more rigid.
This means that the stomach can’t hold as much and doesn’t stretch or move as it should when you’re digesting food.
This stiff walled stomach is sometimes called a leather bottle stomach.
This type of cancer is very fast growing and is often found when it’s already at an advanced stage, which means that surgery isn’t usually possible.
It might be difficult to completely remove a large cancer or one that has spread beyond the stomach wall.
Signs and symptoms of stomach cancer may include:
- Trouble swallowing
- Stomach pain
- Feeling bloated after eating
- Feeling full after eating small amounts of food
- Not feeling hungry when you would expect to be hungry
- Heartburn
- Indigestion
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Losing weight without trying
- Feeling very tired
- Stools that look black
Sources: Cancer Research UK, Mayo Clinic
“I’m just going to try and fight this in every way possible. I’m planning my wedding, we were supposed to get married in a couple of years but we’ve brought that forward because we don’t know if I’m going to be here.
“The thing that breaks me is how much I’m going to miss out on in Arlo’s life. He’s everything to me – he gives my life purpose.
“I’d say to other people, push for answers and don’t stop. If someone else had this type of cancer and they can catch it at an earlier stage by making doctors do the correct tests, then at least I know that I’ve helped somebody then.”
A fundraiser has been launched to help pay for any future treatment and help Georgia make memories with her family.
You can donate to Georgia’s GoFundMe page here.
Georgia is now trying to make memories with Callum and Arlo[/caption]
She’s pictured here wedding dress shopping after having to bring her big day forward[/caption]
She’s angry at being fobbed off by doctors for so long[/caption]
