Becky took herself to A&E and finally received a diagnosis
A mum of three with bloating so severe it felt like she was “nine months’ pregnant” says she was misdiagnosed twice before she learnt the truth. Becky Small, 33, a logistics manager from Hampshire, first noticed “severe bloating” in her abdomen in April, describing it as feeling “really hard” – so uncomfortable that she struggled to sleep.
She also experienced pain on the right side of her back, prompting her to visit a GP who examined her, requested a urine test and prescribed anti-inflammatory medication. When her condition showed no signs of improvement, Becky sought a second opinion at a different surgery, where she claims the GP did not carry out any tests and “didn’t even feel” her stomach before prescribing medication for suspected gastroenteritis – an infection of the intestines.
By early May, Becky’s abdomen had become “rock solid”, leading her to take herself to A&E, where two doctors “examined (her) properly” and were “shocked” that neither blood tests nor CT scans had previously been carried out. That same evening, Becky was informed that doctors had discovered two lesions on her ovaries and one on her kidney, and her immediate reaction was that she was “going to die”.
Following a biopsy, Becky finally received her diagnosis of stage four metastatic ovarian cancer on 1 June, before beginning chemotherapy just four days later. Becky’s husband Paul, 34, has been among her strongest supporters, particularly when they informed their two eldest children, Logan, 10, and Harley, eight, about her cancer diagnosis.
Regarding their daughter, Iris, four, Becky explained she understands her mother is poorly, but is “too young to understand” what cancer truly means. Becky told PA Real Life: “My daughter starts school this year and that is the bit that scares me the most – that I’m not going to see her start school. I just want to be a mum to my kids and to be a wife to my husband.”
According to the NHS, the primary symptoms of ovarian cancer can include bloating, abdominal pain or discomfort in the pelvic area, loss of appetite and increased urgency or frequency of urination, alongside back pain. Despite being diagnosed at 16 with polycystic ovaries which later complicated conceiving her children, Becky described herself as having always been “quite a fit and healthy person”, and visiting the GP was “very rare” for her.
Therefore, when she began experiencing bloating on 22 April, she initially suspected it might simply be connected to her polycystic ovaries. She said: “My stomach was going really hard all the time.
“I couldn’t fit any trousers on and it was just really uncomfortable. I couldn’t sleep and I couldn’t even roll over in bed because it was so painful and so big.”
Becky said she consulted a GP on 27 April, who examined her abdomen and suspected it might be inflammation, so he requested a urine test which subsequently came back clear. She was also prescribed medication to tackle suspected inflammation and was advised it should “go down within a couple of days” – yet Becky noticed no improvement “whatsoever”.
“The bloating was getting bigger,” she said. On 30 April, Becky visited a different GP, claiming the doctor neither carried out any tests nor examined her abdomen.
Instead, she was given medication for gastroenteritis and told she would be “back to normal” within a week. By 5 May, Becky said: “My stomach was rock solid, it was uncomfortable and it was painful.
“The only way to describe it was like I was nine months’ pregnant. I couldn’t breathe or walk properly too.”
‘Doctors examined me and were shocked’
That morning, Becky took herself to A&E, where two doctors examined her, a cannula – a fine tube – was inserted, and blood tests and a CT scan were carried out. She said: “Two doctors actually examined me properly and were shocked that I hadn’t had tests done.”
Later that same evening, Becky was taken into a side room and told that doctors had discovered two lesions on her ovaries and one on her kidney. Becky said: “My three children are my world, so thinking that you’re going to die is a horrible feeling.”
A biopsy on 20 May confirmed nine days later that Becky had stage four metastatic cancer, with an oncologist specifying on 1 June that it had originated on her ovaries. Becky said she was in and out of hospital during the wait between the conversation on 5 May and her cancer diagnosis on 29 May.
“It was a hell of a long wait,” she said. Becky confirmed she has undergone two rounds of chemotherapy since 5 June and is grateful that she has not yet experienced “any major side effects”.
She faces four further rounds of chemotherapy, due to be completed by September, along with a full hysterectomy – where the womb and cervix is removed – in August. For the time being, Becky said she does not wish to know her prognosis as she wants to “enjoy what time” she has left without worrying that she “may not wake up in the morning”.
Paul and Becky chose not to tell their youngest child about her mother’s cancer diagnosis as she is “too young”, but Becky described breaking the news to their two eldest children as “the hardest conversation” she has ever had in her life. She said: “I was in hospital at the time.
“We were just honest with them and said if they have questions or they want to talk, then they can.” A fundraising campaign has since been set up to provide financial support for Becky and her family while she undergoes treatment.
Becky said the donations will enable her family to make memories like “going to the park and having an ice cream”. She added: “It’s just things I want them to remember if I’m not here.”
Reflecting on her cancer journey, Becky said: “I think I probably should have pushed to have extra tests done. If they had just run some more tests before, then I may be further along than where I am now.
“If I hadn’t taken myself to A&E, then I probably wouldn’t be here now.” Becky believes ovarian cancer is “silent and deadly”, urging young women particularly to remain vigilant for symptoms and seek testing if they have any worries.
She said: “I don’t want other women or even my own daughter to have to go through what I’m going through.”
You can donate to Becky’s GoFundMe at this link here.
