A CARING Worcester cancer survivor is leading the campaign for greater awareness of bowel cancer after a loo break saved her life.
Sue Rogers from Eastbury Manor Equestrian in Lower Broadheath paid a visit to a portaloo while at a horse trials in 2015 and saw blood in the pan before she flushed.
She was at the event to watch her daughter Vicki Hancox compete and was shocked at the sight of blood in the toilet.
Sue visited her GP who initially thought it was due to piles but sent her for tests to be sure.
No-one thought she had a serious problem so when the tests showed she had a large cancerous tumour in her bowel it was a huge shock.
“I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t feel ill and neither the doctors nor I expected this diagnosis. It was hard for it to sink in and when it did, I just felt so lucky that I had spotted the blood because I’d had no other symptoms.
“If I hadn’t noticed this and got it checked out, I wouldn’t have been diagnosed when I was and the outcome could have been a lot worse,” she added.
“We’re encouraging everyone to ‘take a poo and have a view’ – it could save other lives as it did mine.”
When Sue’s cancer was diagnosed, the cancer hadn’t spread to any other organs but the tumour was inoperable.
Sue had to endure months of gruelling chemotherapy and radiotherapy in an attempt to shrink the tumour so that it could be operated on.
At one point this resulted in Sue suffering from third degree burns and she spent eight days in hospital suffering from sepsis.
Eventually the chemotherapy resulted in the tumour shrinking and on in November 2016 it was operated on but owing to complications, Sue was only discharged on January 9.
The caring mum has lost three stones in weight and now has a colostomy bag which she hated at first but now accepts it doesn’t stop her daily routine and no one can tell she is wearing one.
“Although it’s been a very traumatic, difficult and painful time, we’ve still managed to have lots of laughs through it all,” she said.
“My husband Pete has been amazing and I couldn’t have got through it without him and rest of our family and friends.
Daughter Vicki will also be doing her bit to raise awareness of the disease by branding her horsebox with the Beating Bowel Cancer logo.
Judith Brodie, Chief Executive of Beating Bowel Cancer, said: “Bowel cancer is the UK’s second biggest cancer killer but if caught early, 97 per cent of cases can be successfully treated.
“However the success rate can drop to just seven per cent for a late-stage diagnosis,” she added.
Anyone interested in being involved with Sue’s campaign can contact Sue by e-mail at [email protected] or on Twitter @1966smrogers
