Georgia Runham, Birmingham
I’m a beautician who was diagnosed with stage 3 bowel cancer after a colonoscopy on 20 December 2024, where my consultant found a 50mm tumour. I was just 20.
Before my diagnosis, I had started to notice that something didn’t feel quite right. Like a lot of people my age, cancer wasn’t even on my radar, so I didn’t initially think the symptoms could be anything significant. I was feeling tired and a bit nauseous and my face also developed quite severe acne which I put down to my age or stress. The biggest symptom though was loose stools with blood in them when I went to the toilet. This was all happening in October 2024, three months before my actual diagnosis. I was mostly excited and happy that I was opening a new salon and wanted to open with a bang in December, just in time for everyone’s Christmas and New Year appointments.
I told my mom about the bleeding and she said that I must go and get checked out at the GP. I took with me a sample of my stool in a proper medical container. At my GP practice I saw a nurse and I told her about feeling sick, loose stools and the bleeding. She then visually examined me and she told me that I had a tear. I was surprised at this I didn’t feel any pain at all when I went to the toilet, but I trusted the nurse and hoped that the tear would heal. She told me that I didn’t need for them to send my stool sample off for testing.
Time went on and things remained the same. I called 111 at one point to get advice. Eventually in December 2024 I made an emergency appointment with my GP, but this time my mom came with me. We had done some research ourselves and thought that I may have an inflammatory bowel disease like colitis, celiac disease or Crohn's disease. I also knew that my symptoms could also be indicative of bowel cancer.
Our experience then with the GP will stay with me forever as it was very negative and upsetting. She examined me and said that I didn’t have a tear, which I knew anyway. She said that she would do some blood tests but didn’t explain what they were for. My mom then asked if she would also do a FIT test. The GP said that I was too young for bowel cancer and so she wanted to do other things first. Both of my grandfathers had had bowel cancer, but the GP at no time asked for my family history of any of the conditions that I thought my symptoms could be a result of. In the end my mom stood up and pleaded, and the GP eventually reluctantly agreed to a FIT test. The next day I handed in my FIT test and had bloods done and waited to be contacted about the results. In the meantime, I couldn’t work as I felt so nauseous and had started to really worry.
A few days later the results of my FIT test were on my NHS app, and they were off the chart, indicating bowel cancer or another serious disease. I was terrified. I also couldn’t get into my GP for my results to be discussed and for me to be placed on the cancer pathway. My trying to get an appointment went on for a few days and each day I was getting more anxious. In the end, I used my private health care, whereupon a private GP emailed my own GP for me to be seen and to put me on the cancer pathway.
Diagnosis
I then had an appointment for a colonoscopy with a colorectal surgeon, who diagnosed my cancer following my colonoscopy on 20 December 2024. I'll never forget being told I had bowel cancer. The consultant said we needed to do more tests to see the extent of the cancer. The CT scan and MRI scan were done that day as it was a private hospital. After what was only four hours, but what felt like forever, the consultant came back in and told us that he had ‘good news’ and that the cancer hadn’t spread. He told us that he could remove the tumour on 3 January 2025, in two weeks’ time. Again, this was the hardest wait of my life and the worst Christmas ever for all of us. I was still bleeding but by this time I knew why and what was causing it, which was frightening.
I was told that there was the possibility of having a stoma, and I had to be measured up for a stoma bag, prior to my operation to see where it would sit best under my clothing. It was only a two week wait until my operation, but I was so worried that the cancer would spread during that time and wondered if having the colonoscopy had burst the tumour and had made it worse. Suddenly, I went from being a typical young woman with plans for the future to facing major surgery and also potentially chemotherapy. It was overwhelming, but I knew I had to face it.
Surgery and treatment
I had my surgery on 3 January 2025 with the use of a surgical robot. My surgery went better than expected and I was so relieved to have not had to have a stoma. I was able to go home after six days in hospital and then it was a wait for the histology results of my tumour.
A few days later we had a follow up appointment with the consultant who interpreted the histology reports from the tumour. I was diagnosed with moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma: stage 3 cancer. He had taken away 54 lymph nodes but the three closest to the tumour had cancer in them. This meant that I needed chemotherapy.
The thought of chemotherapy terrified me. I knew that the side effects were bad and I worried about my losing my hair. I was also told that it could affect my future fertility. Having a baby was something that I hadn’t thought about yet but now I was forced to think about a future without potentially having a child of my own.
I was informed that I could have fertility treatment whereby they could try and preserve my eggs for the future. I started this fertility treatment in February 2025, just a few weeks after my surgery so I was still feeling fragile. The whole ovary stimulation process was so painful for me and the procedures that I had to have were so invasive. At times, it felt like I lost all sense of dignity with bowel cancer and fertility treatment. I was so glad when it was all over and I’m super grateful that they collected some eggs that will be there if I ever can’t conceive naturally in the future.
Chemo and the all-clear
I started my chemotherapy at the end of February 2025 and it was the hardest thing I have ever done. The cycles got worse as they went on. I had eight rounds of chemo called CAPOX which consisted of an infusion and then two weeks of chemo tablets with a week off. The chemo ran in three-week cycles. The side effects hit almost instantly and just built up the more cycles I had. I suffered from neuropathy, whereby I was extremely sensitive to anything cold and that was not room temperature. I felt extremely weak and struggled to swallow anything at all and my temperature would rocket. My periods stopped and I had terrible hot flushes and my bones ached terribly. I self-isolated as my immune system was so weak and I obviously couldn’t work. I did get to spend my 21st birthday at home in isolation. On the plus side, my hair didn’t fall out at all and the oncology staff at Harborne Hospital really looked after me and my family. I'll be forever grateful for their kindness.
My last chemotherapy was in July 2025, which finished in August. I then had a CT scan to see if there was any sign of cancer. The wait was unbearable as so many things go through your mind. However, on 14 August 2025, I had the results of my CT scan and they were all clear! As a surprise, my mom bought me a huge banner in anticipation of good results, to hang out of my window celebrating the news and also a big balloon which said ‘As clear as crystal, baby’ on it! We were all celebrating and my mom was running round the garden. The relief was immense and I started to look forward to getting back to work and leading the life that I'd missed so much.
I did have one more hurdle to cross. When my tumour report came back in January 2025, my surgeon advised that I may want to consider genetic testing for Lynch syndrome. He also recommended that my sister Frankie, who was 19 at the time and also my mom and dad, also have a colonoscopy. My mom and my sister both did and I’m delighted to say that they all had a clear colonoscopy.
The appointment for the genetic clinic didn’t come through until September 2025. The clinician said that if I had Lynch syndrome, I had a high risk of the bowel cancer recurring and of getting other cancers like ovarian and breast cancer. She talked about the possibility of needing to have a hysterectomy and mastectomy too. I cried so much after that appointment as it was all such a shock. A couple of days later I gave blood that went away for genetic testing. The wait for the results was horrendous, but they came back in December 2025. They showed that I had zero genetic disorders for the 18 different types that they tested for, including Lynch syndrome. I was so happy, not just for me but for my whole family too. Life finally felt like it was going my way and I was looking forward to starting 2026 with new health and a positive mindset.
I did have a scare in November 2025 when I started bleeding again, but my annual surveillance colonoscopy was brought forward, and it was all clear. My periods returned not long after chemotherapy and I have just as much chance of anyone else at conceiving children naturally in the future.
While I try to stay positive as much as I can and I don’t let cancer define me, it creeps into my mind sometimes if I have an ache or pain. My fingers feel like they'll never be the same from the neuropathy I suffered and as a beautician, it's a constant reminder of the cancer. My energy also isn’t what it was, but I know that it's still just months since I had the all-clear.
Unfortunately, due to my illness I've had to let my second salon go. I just couldn’t make it work whilst I was so poorly, but I had a new perspective about life and what was important. I still have my original salon, which is still doing well, and I have all my old clients back and more. I no longer work weekends either as I want to spend my time with my family and friends, as ultimately that is what is most important in life.
The support I had and my main message
I want to recognise the incredible support I’ve had from my family and my boyfriend, who have been by my side through everything, and the amazing different medical teams at Harborne Hospital and Birmingham Women’s Hospital. I have no doubt that all these people saved my life. I'll be forever grateful to every one of them.
Isaac and I bought a house in September 2025 and it went through in December. We've done some renovations and finally moved in in February this year. Our new GP goes above and beyond too. She has trained all her staff to heighten their awareness of bowel cancer because of what happened to me at my age.
If there’s one thing I would want people to take away from my story, it’s to never ignore your body or assume you’re ‘too young’ for something serious. Often, things get passed off, particularly as ‘woman things’ like period pains, hormones or the stress of everyday life.
I also think that young people can be invisible. We find it harder to speak up for ourselves and to be confident in certain situations, especially things like medical appointments. If it wasn’t for my mom being in that appointment with my GP asking for a FIT test, I would've been invisible again.
I was 20 when I was diagnosed with stage 3 bowel cancer. So many young people think it couldn’t happen to them, but the reality is, it can and the earlier it’s caught, the better the outcome. Trust your instincts and if something doesn’t feel right, get it checked and don’t be afraid to push for answers. You know your body better than anyone and people close to you can also see if you’re not right.
This experience has completely changed my perspective on life. It’s made me stronger, more grateful and more determined to use my story to help others. If sharing my story encourages even one person to seek help sooner and for GPs to be more aware of acting on symptoms rather than age, then it’s worth it.
