He believed he was suffering from one of the symptoms of the Long Covidafter she recovered from the infection, but a cancer. The story of a 49-year-old former Royal Air Force soldier is one that can thrill everyone, for those random miracles. To save her, in fact, not only her doctors, but above all her own daughter aged 24, who first noticed something strange about her.
86-year-old woman raised 189 children: “As long as I have the strength, I will continue to do so”
Trade cancer for Long Covid
Ann Gilbert, originally from Liverpool but residing in Walton, Great Britain, she had Covid in 2021 and then recovered. After a few months, however, she began to experience very particular symptoms. “I have always been a particularly energetic and active person, but for months after the infection I had started to feel very exhausted. I was convinced that they were the combined effects of Long Covid and menopause, so I thought it was an absolutely passing situation “- says the woman -” Then, one day, as I was getting out of the shower, my daughter noticed something above my right breast . I minimized, convinced it was a small, minor lump, but she had insisted on telling me to get it checked. You saved my life. ‘
The correct diagnosis
At that point, Ann went to the Liverpool hospital to undergo mammograms and a biopsy. And that’s how the doctors discovered that she had negative, rapidly growing breast cancer. “The first reaction was one of shock, because as soon as they tell you that you have cancer you think you will die and that you have little left to live. I had not yet turned 49, I was afraid of leaving soon and suffering, and I did not find it right. Nobody in my family had had cancer, I have never smoked and I have always had a healthy life “- Ann Gilbert tells the Liverpool Echo -” The hardest thing was having to tell my daughter, who in that week would have made years. She too had the same negative thoughts as me, but what worried me was seeing my loved ones suffer for me. That’s why I tried to be positive and always stressed that cancer could be cured with the right therapies ».
The cure
In the case of breast cancer such as the one that affected Ann, a timely diagnosis is absolutely crucial for survival, even before choosing the most appropriate therapies. «Knowing your body is essential. If you are in the shower, feel your armpits and upper breasts well. If there is something that you believe is wrong, or that worries you, contact a doctor as soon as possible “- advises the 49-year-old -” To recover I am undergoing a five-month course of chemotherapy, surgery and radiotherapy. It will not be an easy path, but for doctors I have a good chance of survival and if my daughter had not noticed that lump, I would now have a lot less. First, I cut my hair short, knowing it will fall out with chemo. But there are too many good things waiting for me in the future that I want to live for. In November I will become a grandmother, my daughter will get her doctorate in 2023 and I am finally back in my hometown, closer to the rest of my family ».
Last updated: Tuesday 4 October 2022, 01:00
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