Alice Norris, London
I was diagnosed with bowel cancer aged 35 on the 10 June 2025: a date which will stick with me forever.
I’m a 35-year-old Geordie who’s lived in London the last 10 years. I consider myself a fit, healthy and active gal and have two wonderful children: two-year-old Oscar and Olivia (nine months). I work for a big alcohol company in the global communications team.
Whilst I was pregnant with my second child Olivia, I started to notice blood in my poo every time I went to the toilet. I was given medication for piles with my first child Oscar, and told there was likely nothing to worry about, so I tried to forget it.
However, every time I went to the toilet I had a sinking feeling — what if something was wrong? When I was about six months pregnant, my bowel habits took a dramatic turn. I needed to go really frequently and the stools looked completely different. I put it down to the pregnancy and promised myself I’d get it checked out once the baby was born.
After Olivia was born, the symptoms didn’t get better. In fact, they got worse. I used to lie in bed and think ‘it can’t be cancer – I’m too young’. But then I remembered Dame Deborah James and promised myself I’d book a GP appointment ASAP.
After a couple more visits to the GP to discuss various symptoms, I was referred for a colonoscopy, which is when I was diagnosed. In the build up to the colonoscopy, and especially on the day itself, I was terrified because I had a bad feeling. I knew something was wrong and I had a feeling it might be cancer. I was shaking through the procedure.
Afterwards, I heard the nurses say to each other they’d ‘find a room’ and my heart sank. I knew receiving news in private was bad. As the nurse told me, her eyes filled with tears and she said, ‘I’m so sorry but we found a big tumour, and I’m very, very sure it’s cancer’.
After that moment, life became a whirlwind of scans, appointments, blood tests and getting to know my new best friends: doctors and nurses. It wasn’t the maternity leave I expected. I felt awful having to leave Olivia so much at four months old. Thankfully we were lucky to have amazing family support from near and far.
Initially, I met with a surgeon who told me I had a big, inoperable tumour in my bowel, and ‘spots’ on my lungs, which in the circumstances were very likely to be cancer spread. The car journey home was the worst 20 minutes of my life. My heart hurt so much as I imagined leaving my husband, Oscar and Olivia. I thought I was going to die.
Thankfully, a PET scan revealed the spots on my lungs had ‘resolved’. It felt like a huge relief and my husband and I celebrated by going for lunch at the local garden centre and buying a lavender plant!
Gradually, a plan emerged starting with six rounds of chemotherapy over 12 weeks. I had to stop breastfeeding which really upset me, but I knew I didn’t have a choice.
The chemotherapy was tough, physically and mentally. I got through it with amazing support from my husband, family, friends and colleagues. I found having somebody with me during the chemotherapy really helped as a distraction. I was lucky with side effects but still experienced a whole host of them, including nausea, constant diarrhoea and heavy fatigue which was really challenging with two little children. I also had an entertaining side effect or two, such as cravings for McDonald’s chicken nuggets!
Mentally, every tweak or pain sent me into a spiral of worry that the cancer was spreading. It was hard not knowing what the day would hold, but I convinced myself to take it one step at a time. We created a tagline for my journey, #NTF (which stands for ‘Nuke the F******’), referring to the chemo and my tumour! The day I finished chemo was the biggest relief of my life.
I’m currently undergoing five weeks of radiotherapy. It’s challenging because it’s daily, but the side effects aren’t as severe as chemotherapy. I hope to have surgery in the New Year.
The support we received from the medical team was incredible. Nurses and doctors were so kind, caring and supportive. And we couldn’t do it without our army of family and friends. Whether it’s cards, visits, phone calls, or looking after the children, they have really lifted us and carried us through tougher, uncertain moments.
I found Bowel Cancer UK an incredibly helpful source of knowledge, especially for learning about bowel cancer and what treatment could look like. I felt like the website answered lots of questions I didn’t have time to ask in meetings. I especially found the real-life stories helpful. They made me realise how different people’s experiences can be and made me feel less alone.
My number one takeaway would be: if you have a niggle, something on your mind, always get it checked. You’re never wasting a doctor’s time. Early detection is so key with cancer — it saves lives! And in the words of the Bowel Babe Dame Deborah James: #checkyourpoo!
