A Doctor Insisted That She Had To Lose Weight, When In Reality She Was Suffering From Ovarian Cancer
Hannah Catton, a 24-year-old veterinary nurse, was suffering from painful symptoms for years before finally receiving a diagnosis that turned her life upside down.
The UK native spent years trying to explain to her doctor’s the kind of pain she was experiencing. After going to appointments for bloating, irregular periods, and urinary tract infections, Hannah never quite got the answers she was looking for.
She even sought out doctors in both England and Australia after moving there in 2019 with her boyfriend. But doctors in both parts of the world ended up telling her that there was no need for concern.
Her symptoms eventually started getting worse. During one of her many appointments, a doctor didn’t even take the time to examine her properly.
The same doctor even had the audacity to suggest to her that her weight could be the cause of her issues.
In her interview with BBC, Hannah recalls the doctor telling her to lose weight which was “hard to hear,” as she was not overweight but actually in good physical shape at the time.
Hannah finally was able to receive a proper diagnosis, but it wasn’t until she physically collapsed in October of 2021.
At first, doctors thought she could have been experiencing an ectopic pregnancy. But after getting the proper scans, they discovered that Hannah had been living with a cancerous ovarian tumor that was 20cm long and weighed approximately 4.4 lbs.
GoFundMe; pictured above is Hannah
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It had burst and was removed during a lengthy laparotomy procedure.
Now, Hannah is undergoing chemotherapy and telling her story in order to “help other women advocate for themselves more.” She encourages women to request additional testing, especially if a doctor is not properly addressing their symptoms.
Hannah has friends and family joining together to provide her with support via a GoFundMe page, especially because she has to battle her cancer all the way in Australia, versus in England with her family due to the pandemic.
A friend of Hannah’s who is helping to organize the fundraising writes, “Hannah is going through all of this without her family here, having not seen them for a couple of years which has been unimaginably hard for her.”
Hannah’s friends made a GoFundMe page that describes the kinds of things she could strongly use help obtaining as she continues her fight, including wigs, clothing, food, and gas for her car.
Her friends are determined to make things “a tiny bit easier for one of the most brilliant, upbeat, and genuine” women they know.
You can read more about Hannah’s story here.
More About:Human Interest