Anita Bullen, Norfolk
I was diagnosed with stage 1 bowel cancer in March 2026, at the age of 56.
I’m 56 years old and live with my husband five minutes from the beach in the seaside town of Cromer. We have two sons together. I work as a special educational needs (SEN) teaching assistant at the school my eldest son went to, and I love running, especially long distance.
An unexpected diagnosis
My bowel cancer journey began with a routine screening test. My husband had completed a screening test two weeks before me, and it was clear. I thought I had nothing to worry about. I was shocked when I received the results of my test. I was told there was blood found and that I’d been scheduled for a colonoscopy.
While undergoing the procedure, the team found two polyps. After the colonoscopy, the doctor said he was sure there was nothing to worry about. I felt reassured. I had a phone call a couple of weeks later, asking me to attend a hospital appointment for the results.
I still didn’t feel worried. We had plenty of other things to be dealing with: a week before my appointment, my father-in-law had passed away, and my mother-in-law was suffering from Parkinson’s disease.
On the day of the appointment, my husband joined me, and the same doctor who had performed my colonoscopy welcomed me into his room. Then he said, ‘You have cancer’. The shock I felt in that moment was awful. Then I went numb.
While the diagnosis was still sinking in, a nurse came to take me for a blood test. I was told a CT scan would follow, and then I’d have a surgical appointment to discuss my treatment plan.
Appointments and surgery
The next couple of weeks were filled with phone calls arranging scans, conversations with specialist nurses, and appointments to discuss my next steps. It was all very frightening.
After a lot of talking with my surgeon, I decided on surgery to give me the best chance of removing all the cancer. A week later, dates were given to me for surgery.
In the lead up to and after the surgery, the colorectal nurses were a great support. They offered so much information and support and answered all my questions.
After the operation, I was told the surgeon had successfully removed all the cancer in my bowel. It came back that I had stage 1 bowel cancer.
Processing my feelings
I was in complete shocked at my diagnosis. It almost felt like it wasn’t really happening to me.
There was definitely an element of anger too. Why me? I thought I was healthy and fit. My family was already going through a tough time, with my husband just having lost his dad. Trying to find the strength to then tell my children and my own parents about the diagnosis was hard.
On top of this, my treatment plan meant I couldn’t run as often as usual. This took its own toll on my mental health, because I really did count on the exercise to help me process my feelings. Even now, my body feels different to what I’m used to and that does bring an element of sadness.
I’m now 12 weeks post-operation, and I do feel like I’m only just now beginning to process a lot of what has happened emotionally. I can't deny that I’m scared for the future, especially while I deal with some complications from the surgery.
However, I still do try to remember how lucky I am that my bowel cancer was caught at such an early stage. I feel very glad that the cancer has been removed and that I didn’t need any chemotherapy.
The support I had
I feel grateful for all the support I was able to lean on throughout my journey.
One of the teachers I work with had been through the same diagnosis and surgery as me. She offered me so much support, and I liked chatting with her because she just ‘got’ what I was feeling. Similarly, the close friends I’d made through my running were incredibly helpful and caring.
Bowel Cancer UK and other charities were also brilliant helps. Their information and support groups were so helpful. And following on from my operation, I used a lot of the information on Bowel Cancer UK’s website to guide my eating habits and return to exercise.
My message to others
As I’ve recovered from my surgery, I've had time to reflect on whether or not I really did have no symptoms leading up to my diagnosis. As I was going through the menopause, I look back now and can see some of the symptoms I was experiencing were probably to do with cancer, but I put them down to menopause.
I'd just like to remind people that cancer doesn’t have to mean you’ll die. But it can happen to you regardless of how healthy or fit you are.
Do the screening tests, because they can save your life. And if your body doesn’t feel right, get it checked out.
Don’t give up hope and talk about your feelings.
