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By Melissa Fleur Afshar
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Meg Martin, 41, never thought the on-and-off back pain, fatigue and brain fog bringing her down were the warning signs of a life-threatening illness sitting undetected in her body.
The busy mom was juggling work while homeschooling her daughter and put the symptoms down to stress, exhaustion and perimenopause. After all, her recent blood test results had come back clear. But when worsening pain landed Martin in the emergency room one Sunday, scans revealed something she had never once contemplated, a large mass on her left kidney.
"In June, I was diagnosed with chromophobe renal cell carcinoma, a type of kidney cancer," Martin told Newsweek. "What still amazes me is how many signs I had that I never imagined could be connected to cancer."
Read More on Health
The Difficulty in Spotting Kidney Cancer
Her experience highlights the primary challenge with kidney cancer—that it can develop without obvious warning signs. Symptoms such as fatigue, back pain and unexplained weight loss can have many possible causes, making them easy to dismiss or attribute to everyday life.
Martin said she had experienced body aches every now and then for years, particularly back pain after long days, as well as fatigue, brain fog, night sweats, cold spells, itchy legs and unexplained weight loss. She also felt uncomfortable after eating.
"I was busy, so it was easy to explain the symptoms as being tired, stressed, or simply having a lot on my plate," she said.
The weight loss seemed explainable because she had recently adopted a low-carbohydrate diet, while night sweats appeared consistent with perimenopause. Her itchy legs were also easy to brush off as just being the result of dry skin. Importantly, medical tests performed shortly before her diagnosis did not indicate anything was seriously wrong.
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"My lab work had been normal in May," Martin said. "Which made it harder to recognize that something serious could be happening."
Her white blood cell counts were not even elevated, and her kidney function was apparently good, she said. Her gynecologist suggested her symptoms were most likely linked to fluctuating hormones and did not recommend seeking scans.
Looking back, Martin said she should have pushed for firmer answers. But Dr. Eric Singer, a urologic surgeon and oncologist at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, told Newsweek that kidney cancer's lack of obvious warning signs can complicate detection.
"Kidney cancer often has no early warning signs, which leads to many patients getting diagnosed at a later stage," Singer said. "Early-stage kidney cancer typically causes no symptoms."
Because routine screening is not conducted for most people, he added, cancers may instead be discovered incidentally when patients undergo imaging for a completely different reason.
"When symptoms do appear, the disease may be more advanced," Singer said. "Some of those symptoms to look out for include; blood in your urine, lower back pain, unexplained weight loss and fatigue."
Dr. Mutahar Ahmed is director of the Robotic Surgery & Minimally Invasive Urologic Oncology Fellowship Program at Hackensack University Medical Center. He offered a similar assessment.
"Early-stage kidney cancer is notoriously silent," Ahmed told Newsweek. "We find the vast majority of small renal masses when a patient gets an ultrasound or CT scan for an unrelated issue."
Ahmed agreed that symptoms can include hematuria, or blood in the urine, as well as a persistent, dull ache or pressure in your side or back that is not from an injury.
Martin’s Diagnosis and Recovery
For Martin, the turning point came when severe back pain and fatigue sent her to the ER. She suspected a kidney infection, urinary tract infection or even the flu. Instead, imaging revealed a large mass on her left kidney, and a diagnosis of stage 2 cancer was given.
"I was in shock and had a panic attack when I got the news," she said, adding: "Cancer wasn't even on my radar."
Later that month, Martin underwent an open radical nephrectomy, removing her left kidney and the mass, alongside a para-aortic lymph node dissection. The tumor ultimately measured more than 5.5 inches, which was larger than initially feared.
Martin spent five days in hospital, where pathology performed after her surgery confirmed cancer.
"It was a lot to process, especially as a mom who just wants to be here to watch her daughter grow up," she said.
Her recovery since has been long and difficult, with it taking roughly three months for her to begin feeling close to normal.
Fortunately, more recent scans and blood work have shown no evidence of cancer, Martin said, while her remaining kidney is functioning well. She continues to undergo surveillance every few months and is now celebrating the small wins, like being able to take bike rides with her daughter again.
The experience, however, has left far more than a surgical scar.
"Cancer doesn't just affect your body," Martin said. "It affects your sense of safety, your mental health, your perspective on life."
Martin now hopes her experience encourages others, particularly mothers accustomed to placing competing responsibilities ahead of themselves, not to dismiss changes in their bodies.
"If something feels different or wrong, it's OK to keep asking questions, seek another medical opinion, and advocate for yourself," she said. "I also want other moms to know that self-care isn't selfish.
"Your health matters; your family would be lost without you, so take time to take care of yourself or you could pay later like me."
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Rebecca Flood and James Debens
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