Marie Adams, Surrey

I’m 48 years old and I was diagnosed with stage 3 bowel cancer in November 2023. 

I live with my amazing husband, Graham, and we have a beautiful eight-year-old son called Jake. I’m a naturally ‘on the go’ kind of person and always keep myself busy — outside of my work as a counselling psychologist I volunteer as an assistant Beaver leader for the Scouts. Helping people feeds my soul.  

My diagnosis

On 11 October 2023, I suddenly became very unwell. I left work early because I had awful stomach cramps, but by the time I arrived home I had started violently throwing up. I was really scared because my vomit smelled like poo. I called my husband and asked him to come home straight away. Once he saw me, he called an ambulance because I looked so unwell.  

Prior to this I had been having stomach pains for a while. But I didn’t go to my GP because I assumed it was digestive issues caused by surgery I had a few months before to remove my gall bladder. 

In A&E I was given a lot of pain medication and started to feel better. I had a CT scan and just before midnight they told me that I had a tumour that was blocking my bowel and it needed to be removed. I was in total shock.

I was operated on first thing the next morning. The surgeon managed to remove the tumour along with some of my bowel and lymph nodes without giving me a stoma.  

The surgeons were so confident they had removed it all that I convinced myself that it was stage 1 and I wouldn’t need chemo. When the biopsy came back four weeks later, it was a blow to learn it was actually stage 3 as it had infected 15 of my lymph nodes, which had thankfully been removed during the surgery.

Chemotherapy 

I was referred to an oncologist who advised I had chemotherapy to make sure all the cancer was gone. The doctors were impressed with how well I had healed from surgery, so I was able to start chemotherapy at the end of November. This was a relief because I didn’t want to wait.

My first infusion went great and I felt reasonably fine so I was confident I would breeze through chemo. Unfortunately, I suffered anaphylactic shock during my second infusion and on Boxing Day I ended up in A&E with a blood clot in my neck near to my port (an implantable device that delivers chemo through a vein). I then spent another four days in hospital in January with severe colitis (inflammation of the digestive system) caused by the chemo.  

Throughout treatment I used Bowel Cancer UK’s forum to talk to other people who were going through the same chemo. It was really reassuring and made me feel like I wasn’t alone. Their website proved to be a mine of helpful information too and my family read through it whilst I was ill so they could better understand what I was going through.  

I finally finished the four cycles of chemo in February 2024 and my final dose was reduced to help me cope.  

All clear  

In April 2024, I received the all clear. I count myself so lucky. Everyone, from the A&E staff right through to my oncologist have been amazing. I’ve been treated so quickly and with so much care. My Macmillan nurse Faithe is the most amazing woman who always makes me feel better. Every time I hear her voice, I smile.  

My family and friends were incredible and I felt so supported by all of them. They helped by taking me to appointments, sitting with me in hospital, taking my son on days out and even bringing him to and from school. 

Returning to ‘normality’ 

It’s been a hard time for my family and my son worries a lot about me now. I try not to think of the cancer coming back, but it does feel like I’m looking over my shoulder all the time. Throughout my treatment I continued as a Beaver leader for the Scouts. I’m now back at work and trying to return to some ‘normality.’  

I’m quite a resilient person and a natural carer, but this can sometimes work against me as everyone can think I’m completely fine when this isn’t the case. I still get so tired and my body works differently now, so I’m on a constant learning curve. I also have to be mindful of being near a toilet when I’m out of the house which can be stressful.  

Bowel cancer can be tricky to talk about as a lot of people still find talking about bowel habits embarrassing, yet we all poo! I endeavour to talk to people about it as much as I can to help break the stigma.  

Cancer doesn’t discriminate. No matter your gender, age or lifestyle we all need to be vigilant with our bodies and not ignore it’s signals, no matter how minor those may be. If it doesn’t feel right, go to your GP.