A 28-year-old mother who endured agonising stomach pains weeks after giving birth was diagnosed with ‘the worst form of cancer’.
Amy Blackrock, of Kirkby, Liverpool, was told she had pancreatic cancer, which kills 90 per cent of patients within five years.
Her ‘whole world fell apart’ when doctors gave her the shock news just weeks after she gave birth to Annabelle, her second child.
She feared she wouldn’t see her children grow up, saying she faced her mortality at 28, and used them and her partner as motivation to spur her on in her battle against the killer disease.
The journalist, now in remission following chemotherapy and two operations, has spoken of her ordeal for the first time since she was diagnosed last January.
Amy Blackrock, of Kirkby, Liverpool, was told she had pancreatic cancer, which kills 90 per cent of patients within five years (pictured with her daughter Annabelle)
She told the Liverpool Echo: ‘I was feeding Annabelle at 5am in the morning, and was vomiting with really bad pains in my abdomen – worse than childbirth.’
Ms Blackrock, who also has a son called Jack, revealed she struggled to breathe as she was rushed to intensive care in hospital and was put on morphine.
After being allowed home, the pains returned five weeks later and her skin began to turn yellow, both of which are signs of pancreatic cancer.
Tests showed a growth on her pancreas, which doctors originally assumed was a cyst. The 7cm x 5cm lump turned out to be a cancerous tumour.
Ms Blackrock told the newspaper: ‘I had a sense it might be cancer, but I felt like my whole world would fell apart when I found out.
‘I kept looking at my children, thinking – am I going to be here to see them grow up?
Her ‘whole world fell apart’ when doctors gave her the shock news just weeks after she gave birth to Annabelle, her second child
She feared she wouldn’t see her children grow up, and used them as motivation to spur her on in her battle against the killer disease (pictured are Annabelle and Jack)
‘Nothing matters apart from getting through it, you start only caring about your kids, family and life.
‘I saw the diagnosis on the notes the doctor had left by my bed before they came in to tell me. There’s no good way to find out, but that wasn’t the best way to hear it.’
Ms Blackrock, who wore a wig as her ‘safety blanket’, described her diagnosis as ‘the worst form of cancer you can get’.
Symptoms are often vague in the early stages, leaving many to only seek medical advice when they have back pain or unexpectedly lose weight.
If the cancer is caught early enough for surgery, up to a quarter people will live for five years or more.
But if it has spread to nearby tissues, many don’t make it past the six-month mark, figures suggest.
In its most advanced stages, when the cancer has spread to another organ or part of the body, survival is as low as two to six months.
Ms Blackrock, who is set to return to work in the coming weeks, added: ‘It’s really bizarre to face your mortality at 28. But I was lucky it hadn’t spread despite its size.
‘My kids are the reason I could keep going, and my partner, who has given up work for now to look after me.’
Partner Anthony Seddon, 31, proposed to her just before an operation to remove the tumour because he wanted her to know she would come out and get married.
The operation, which was a success and helped her to survive her battle, left her with only half a pancreas and no gall bladder.
And Ms Blackrock, who has lost more than 3st during her ordeal, also endured a ‘life-threatening bleed’ after her artery burst while at home.
Partner Anthony Seddon (pictured), 31, proposed to her just before an operation to remove the tumour because he wanted her to know she would come out and get married
The journalist, now in remission following chemotherapy and two operations, has spoken of her ordeal for the first time since she was diagnosed last January