A woman who experienced a number of common symptoms like bloating for 18 months has been diagnosed with stomach cancer.
Despite normal blood and stool tests, Donna Taylor’s condition was initially undiagnosed. Hoping to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms, she spoke on BBC Morning Live alongside Dr Ranj, an NHS doctor and TV presenter, who emphasised the importance of not ignoring symptoms and trying to get an appointment with a GP, even though it can be challenging.
On a mission to raise awareness and to help others in their journey, Donna said she discovered she had cancer in November 2023 but first began to feel unwell 18 months prior. She recalled: “I started with really bad heartburn, indigestion and reflux and I couldn’t work out why, it was a new thing that was happening to me.
“I did seek help from the GP and I was prescribed omeprazole which is quite a common medication I believe to help tackle that kind of thing. Never questioned at that time why I was having this and kind of felt that I’ve got a tablet, the GP prescribed this and it kind of helped with the symptoms.”
Donna mentioned that she was busy with her job and children and “just got on with things.” However, starting in November of last year, she began to notice what she now knows were early warning signs of stomach cancer, such as “a feeling of fullness, bloating, and changes in my stools.” She added that while these were her early warning signs, these symptoms can also mimic other conditions.
She explained: “I’ve had IBS for over 20 years so the bloating is quite common for me and the change in bowel movement for me is quite common as well. I thought I’ve got a stressful life and I don’t always have the best lifestyle so I thought the IBS was just flaring up.
“I did go back to the GP a few times in that period saying ‘I just don’t feel right, I just don’t feel well, what’s going on?’. I was starting with the menopause, so I had quite extreme fatigue, which is another sign and symptom of stomach cancer. But I just didn’t join the dots.
“I had heard of stomach cancer, but I didn’t know what the early signs and symptoms were. So looking back now, holistically, I can see all those things were there, but I wasn’t persistent enough with pushing and going back. I just thought ‘it’s only a bit of bloating or a bit of indigestion, it’s not serious’, never thought for one minute that we would be dealing with cancer.”
Donna’s symptoms began getting worse around summer of last year and whilst on holiday with her family in August, she noticed that her appetite was poor. She said: “I went from eating quite regular meals to less and less to just one meal a day. I just didn’t feel hungry.” When she did eat, she began throwing up.
Sitting alongside Donna, Dr Ranj highlighted that there are five stomach cancer symptoms you need to keep an eye out for – many of which Donna said she had. These symptoms include:
- heartburn/acid reflux
- feeling/being sick
- burping a lot
- problems swallowing
- feeling full quickly
The doctor mentioned that many of these symptoms are common and don’t always indicate cancer. Regarding heartburn and acid reflux, he noted that many people experience these symptoms, which often aren’t related to cancer. However, it’s still wise to be cautious and consult a doctor.
Other symptoms to watch out for include:
- lump/pain at top of tummy
- loss of appetite/losing weight
- feeling tired/low energy
He continued: “You should see your GP if you’ve got these symptoms and they last for three weeks or longer, especially if you’ve got more than one symptom. Your GP might examine you, they might refer you for tests and if they are really concerned, then they may refer you for investigations on a cancer pathway to try and get you in and get you diagnosed as soon as possible.”
In a situation where a patient is unhappy with their diagnosis – or lack of – the GP says: “Between your doctor and yourself, it’s a patient-professional partnership, there’s not one person telling the other. We know it can be hard to be diagnosed because it can be hard to get an appointment, so keep persisting especially if you are worried.
“When you do get advice that you don’t agree with, voice your opinion, it’s really important to be able to do that. We know that GPs are stretched and they can be short on appointments and time and you feel like you might be bothering them but use that power of going back if things aren’t getting better, we really value people coming back for a review.”
Donna revealed that her cancer has spread and was told it was inoperable. Because of this, her treatment is all about managing cancer which has to far been successful. You can watch the full episode here.