An Australian mum was only 35 when a series of ‘strange’ symptoms landed her in the hospital. It took several visits before a doctor finally took her seriously.
Gemma Farquhar, from Sydney, suffered through months of unexplained bowel movements and vomiting – with four different doctors misdiagnosing her with stomach bugs, parasites, gluten-intolerance, and irritable bowel syndrome.
It was only after she advocated for herself and pushed to have a CT scan that she was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer and given 12 months to live.
Now five years on and two weeks away from turning 40, Gemma has sharing the glaring signs doctors missed and how she’s managed to survive against all odds.
The mum-of-two was enjoying a pizza on a Friday night in January 2020 when she noticed something was awry.
Gemma Farquhar, who lives in Sydney with her family, was just 35 when she was diagnosed with bowel cancer in April 2020
It was only after she advocated for herself and pushed to have a CT scan that she was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer and given 12 months to live
‘A few hours after eating, my tummy was rumbling out of control. I had to rush to the bathroom at 2am and violently started vomiting at the same time,’ she told FEMAIL.
The same thing happened again in March. Gemma felt ‘perfectly normal’ after the ordeal, but her gut told her something was amiss.
‘I contacted the local doctor but he simply said it’s nothing to worry about as it’s just a stomach bug,’ she explained.
On April 23, Gemma went for a walk with a friend when her stomach began cramping
‘I wasn’t satisfied and asked for a blood test and referrals for a gastroenterologist and an allergy specialist.
‘The allergy specialist confirmed I didn’t have an allergy and the gastroenterologist said I most likely had some digestion issues, so they put me on herbal medication.’
The specialist also sent Gemma for more blood tests and requested a stool sample, which came back inconclusive.
‘A few weeks after I did the tests, my stomach was making very loud gurgling sounds and felt a bit crampy at times. I also felt bloated. This went on for about two weeks,’ she said.
‘I called my GP about my results but he said they all looked fine; a couple of things were elevated, but just told me to speak to the gastroenterologist. She thought it could be constipation so put me on medication for that.’
On April 23, Gemma went for a walk with a friend when her stomach began cramping. By nightfall the cramps were more intense, her appetite was gone, and she began to violently throw up.
‘First thing the following morning I called my gastroenterologist,’ she said.
‘After speaking to her she immediately asked me to go for more bloods, have a CT scan, and take some antibiotics if I had a parasite.’
Gemma revealed that her doctors weren’t looking for bowel cancer because she was only 35-years-old and had no history of the illness in her family
Gemma was diagnosed with stage three bowel cancer after emergency surgery
Within an hour, a doctor called Gemma explaining she needed to go to hospital immediately, as they had detected colorectal cancer and an obstruction in her bowel.
She revealed that her doctors weren’t looking for bowel cancer because she was only 35-years-old and had no history of the illness in her family.
‘I went into shock and disbelief. After a restless evening and the inability to eat or drink anything due to the pending surgery, I woke on April 25 where I got wheeled away to the operating theatre. I was in tears and terrified,’ she recalled.
Gemma was diagnosed with stage three bowel cancer after emergency surgery, but doctors noticed the cancer spread to her ovaries during chemotherapy, immediately moving her to a stage four.
‘They found a 13cm tumour on my ovary. We then changed the treatment plan to be more aggressive – I had intensive chemotherapy and was scheduled to have a peritonectomy plus HIPEC in September,’ she said.
A peritonectomy is sometimes referred to as ‘the mother of all surgeries’ because doctors cut a patient down the middle, take out certain cancer-riddled organs, and pour ‘hot chemotherapy’ over their abdomen.
‘The surgery I had removed my peritoneum, omentum, appendix, 20cm of my bowel, and I had a full radical hysterectomy – so my uterus, tubes, cervices, and both my ovaries were also removed,’ she said.
Gemma was unable to walk until day three when she took ‘just one step’ and was unable to eat or drink on her own.
After ‘the mother of all surgeries’ and chemotherapy to kill the cancer it has now spread to her lungs, leaving the young mum with a 14 per cent chance of survival
According to Bowel Cancer Australia, there is a 14 per cent survival rate for those diagnosed with stage four.
‘I try not to look at the statistics and have a great team of medical professionals around me that I trust to keep on going on,’ Gemma said.
But the nightmare wasn’t over – in December 2021, the doctors found three dangerous tumours on Gemma’s right lung.
‘My doctors thought the tumours were in my lungs the whole time but they didn’t catch it on the scans because they’re so tiny,’ she said.
‘It was difficult – all the trauma came rushing back.’
Gemma was shell-shocked because she had done everything right – gone through chemotherapy, surgery, taken all her medication – but it still wasn’t enough.
‘I had to build myself up from nothing. I had to re-learn how to do exercise, how to walk down the street. And then just finding out that it was back… it takes you to a dark place,’ she said.
Despite that, Gemma felt like she was better equipped to deal with the cancer this time around because she’d already been through it once.
In December 2021, the doctors found three dangerous tumours on Gemma’s right lung
Gemma is on treatment which consists of an infusion every fortnight and four tablets a day
The drug Gemma is currently taking was not on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) when she was first prescribed it, and she had to pay $6,472 out of pocket for the first month, after which it was subsidised.
She’s on treatment which consists of an infusion every fortnight and four tablets a day.
‘When I started treatment two years ago, doctors told me I’d become resistant to the drugs within four months – which turned out to be false,’ she said.
‘I’ve been on them for two years now and I’m still going strong. There are no other treatment options at this point in time, so I’m grateful the medication has continued to work for me.’
The mum shared that she was grateful for having access to life-saving medication and a team of dedicated doctors.
‘My children were four and five when I was first diagnosed and I didn’t think I’d make it to the next milestone for them,’ she said.
‘It’s really important to advocate for yourself, to question the doctors, to read as much as you can.’
In addition to the fortnightly infusions and daily tablets, Gemma also has scans every three months of her chest, abdomen, and pelvis.
‘I feel grateful to have seen my daughters grow up. When I was first diagnosed, I never thought I’d get to see my daughter’s tenth birthday – and I just celebrated it with her,’ she said.
Gemma uses her online journal @havingthegutstodealwithbadsh*t to help others diagnosed with cancer maintain positivity and perspective.
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