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By Lucy Notarantonio and Claire Fagan
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I have always suffered from bad period pains, but one day in August 2024, I was crippled by pains. I had to call in sick as a medical secretary, as I physically couldn’t move.
By the end of the day, I went to the emergency room. I wasn’t scanned but was diagnosed with suspected appendicitis, and my appendix was removed.
When I woke up from surgery, I was told that my appendix actually looked fine, but the pain was caused by a burst cyst in my ovary.
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I was discharged and sent home to recover. However, I never got any better. I got worse.
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I contracted an infection from the fluid that came out of the cyst. I was put on antibiotics, with blood tests every few days for three weeks.
I didn’t think of it and wasn’t worried.
Once it cleared up, I still wasn’t myself. I felt a bit better, but I was lethargic, had night sweats, lost weight and I was slow on my feet.
It felt like I was dragging myself around the place. Some days I’d have a good day; others, I couldn’t move.
Eventually, I started to feel like a pulling sensation in my abdomen, on the side where my appendix is. When I was in bed or on my side, I’d have to lie on my back.
I ignored it because I thought everything was still settling after surgery.
But I kept losing weight, as I had no appetite at all.
‘You Don’t Look Well’
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One day in October, my sister said to me, “you don’t look well,” and I said I don’t feel it.
I booked a doctor’s appointment and she examined me by pressing around the area. She said she could feel something on the side of my abdomen.
She couldn’t believe they didn’t scan in August but said it could be scar tissue or an infection, but urged me to go to the emergency room for a scan.
I went home and packed an overnight bag just in case, and my parents came with me.
The doctors at the hospital said they didn’t scan me in August because I was only 33. They took my bloods and sent me for a CT scan.
I was sedated during it, which made me a little loopy, but I was aware of my surroundings. I could hear the doctors talking and Michael Jackson playing on the radio.
Then, at one point, the doctors went quiet, and the vibe in the room changed. I just knew they found something; the nurse couldn’t even look at me.
They told me they’d found a mass around my bowel and colon area, and it would get biopsied.
I thought that didn’t sound good but never thought it would be anything sinister.
Around 30 minutes later, the doctor came around and said: "Based on your symptoms, we think it’s lymphoma."
Gastrointestinal lymphoma is a cancer of the lymphatic system which starts in the digestive tract, such as the stomach or intestines. The symptoms include pain and cramping in the abdomen along with weight loss.
I was with my mom. We both broke down. I remember one of the first things I said was “I can’t be a bald bride,” thinking about my wedding that was supposed to be in October 2025.
My mom called my family, and they all came to the hospital. But one thing I will never forget is the way my sister screamed on the phone when she heard the word cancer.
It was horrific. I will never forget it. I could hear her heart breaking.
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Stage 4 Bowel Cancer
The biopsy results came back six weeks later, after Christmas, and I was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer.
Aound 1 in 20 people get bowel cancer in Ireland, where I am from. Whereas over 158,000 people in the U.S. will be diagnosed with colon and rectal cancer this year.
I started immunotherapy in late January 2025. It is a medical treatment that harnesses and strengthens your body's natural immune system to fight cancer.
I was having it monthly, followed by scans weekly, and every time, the results came back good. In December, I went with just my dad to a scan, as I thought everything would be fine.
The doctor said it looked like my response to treatment was slowing down, and my body wasn’t responding to it.
I could continue, start a clinical trial at another hospital or give chemotherapy a go. I opted for the trial, as the doctor said they’ve been getting good results.
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It involved taking three tablets a day indefinitely while on the trial. I was in every week for blood tests and a scan monthly. There was no waiting around, and I’d get the results the next day.
At the start, I was very nauseous and vomiting a lot but once I got used to it, I felt much better than when I was on immunotherapy.
I was out walking every day. I was seeing people. I felt good.
I was getting brilliant results and seeing significant reductions. Every week my blood test results came back as perfect.
I continued planning the wedding. It kept me busy. It was exciting, something happy to look forward to.
My World Came Crashing Down
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Then, in August, my world came crashing down. Blood tests found my liver markers were dangerously high. I was shocked because I didn’t feel unwell.
I stopped taking the medication and was being monitored, but nothing was improving.
At the same time, my partner of 17 years broke up with me and called the wedding off. I was heartbroken but had to focus on my health.
In September, I had a biopsy on my liver and the results came back with a major liver injury caused by the drugs.
The recovery from it knocked me for six. I was so unwell, I couldn’t get out of bed or eat and eventually turned yellow like a Simpson.
In October, my bloods finally came back down to a normal level. But PET scan results from September found the tumor had grown back significantly, and more had developed around my liver, stomach, pancreas and lymph nodes.
Once my colour returned to normal, medical staff were saying how well I looked, and I asked my dad, “was it really that bad?”
He choked up and said that he was worried because I looked like a very sick cancer patient. I was gaunt, frail and the dark circles under my eyes were basically black.
He was terrified.
‘Nothing About My Journey Has Been Normal’
I am currently on my third round of chemotherapy, and it’s going OK.
Nothing about my journey has been normal or straightforward. The craziest part is I have never suffered with my bowels, never had blood in stool, or anything. My symptoms aren't on the bowel cancer poster, other than weight loss and fatigue, but many women are tired anyway.
I was just a girl on a health kick who wasn’t complaining about weight loss, as I thought exercising and eating well was working.
I know now it's vital to listen to your body and not to ignore the warning signs. The most important thing to do is advocate for yourself, you are the only one that knows your body inside and out.
You only get one body and one life, it is important to fight for to be taken seriously. It could save your life.
Claire Fagan is a 35-year-old woman from Dublin, Ireland, who regularly shares her story on social media to raise awareness of bowel cancer - especially in younger people.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Charlotte Nisbet and Cristina Diciu.
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