The story of Michelle
I had felt unwell for a good while. I have ME and so I put it down to that. I’m 54-is it the menopause?
I began to have bad cramps and diarrhoea, I couldn’t eat without being very ill.
I went to my GP and she sent me for many tests very quickly .The CT scan showed a mass called mucoscele around my appendix, my belly was swollen and it was uncomfortable. I was in a lot of pain .
The way forward was to remove my appendix so I had an appendectomy in February 2015 .
That wasn’t the end though – my surgeon spoke about cancer, I was scared, terrified to be honest .
He spoke of a cancer called Pseudomyxoma Peritonei (PMP). I hadn’t heard of it, it’s so it rare it affects one in a million people!
I was referred to the Christie hospital in Manchester to a brilliant and caring team under Mr Aziz.
I needed to find information about this one in a million cancer, I wanted to know what I faced. I found out that I had to undergo an operation of 11 hours!
I found out I was in very famous company- the wonderful Audrey Hepburn also had PMP and she truly was one in a million!
I really needed to talk to someone who had been through the same as me, so I looked on Facebook and to my joy found a confidential charity called Pseudomyxoma Survivor that could help me. I could ask questions and get answers to help accept and understand the cancer and the operation.
It was the best possible time for me to find others from all over the world who had been through and were still going through this one in a million cancer (in the U.K, USA, Australia, New Zealand!)
I had to have cytoreductive surgery (or as its affectionately known MOAS, “mother of all surgeries “). It involved removing the cancer cells and other organs in my case ,ovaries and gall bladder and my belly button.
I was ‘debunked’ which involved removing fat from my belly in order to get rid of the cancer cells, then I was given a special heated chemo during the surgery called HIPEC (hyperthermic
Interperiteneal chemotherapy).
The surgery is hugely invasive and the recovery takes a long time. I was very lucky in that my surgeon Mr Aziz completed the surgery using key -hole surgery, he is breaking new ground with this method. I am so lucky to be in his care. Usually people like me have a very large scar I still have a scar but smaller.
I had the surgery in September 2015 so I am still recovering. My family have cared for me throughout this time and I love them. My PMP family (the charity ) are always there for me and give me amazing support. The ladies who run the charity, Dawn and Angela, are angels and I thank them for their care and advice. They are always there for us and fill in the gaps we don’t know about. Due to the rarity of the disease it is a very much needed service!
When I was a child my Dad used to say “never judge a book by its cover”. He was a wise man. I and many others look well, despite losing weight, and we try to get on with our lives as best we can.
We all have hard roads to walk and this cancer rarely causes us to become skeletal or lose our hair, however we have had huge surgeries and chemotherapy. Some of us have undergone the surgery several times, but we try to be brave and be “PMP warriors.”
I want to thank the brilliant Christie Hospital, ward 10 staff , Mr Aziz and his team.
I must commend the work of the Pseudomyxoma Survivors charity and the members of the group, others who are one in a million . Like any other charity donations are always needed.
The Cavendish Centre in Sheffield were also there for me too and I thank them for their care.