A woman has told how she was put on a nine-month waiting list for a 'benign cyst' to be removed, only to later discover it was actually a rare cancer.
Rachael Misfud, 38, believes that the growth on her ovary 'likely mutated' while she was in the queue for surgery to remove it.
She's now urging doctors to presume the worst until they are 'sure it's not' cancer, rather than the other way around, as medics were working under the assumption she had a harmless cyst.
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The mother-of-four explained that she first noticed symptoms in 2023, when she began to suffer from extreme fatigue and bloating.
"I have four kids and a full-time job," she said. "It's normal to be tired. But the fatigue I had - I felt like I was 70 years old. I had to sleep when I got home from work just to get through the evening."
As she had experienced similar symptoms a couple of years prior, leading to doctors finding multiple cysts on her ovary, she booked an appointment with her GP.
Rachael was referred to hospital for an internal ultrasound, which revealed that she had a 'mass' on her ovary - but she was reassured it was likely to be benign.
She explained: "The hospital said that if it was a tumour, they would see 'activity'. They showed me the scan and I saw what they were talking about - there was no activity."
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"So I just got put on a waiting list for it to be removed, like a cyst would be," Rachael said, while adding that she believes the 'doctors did nothing wrong' as the 2023 scan 'didn't show anything cancerous'.
The teacher, from Buckinghamshire, was booked in for surgery nine months later in July 2024.
She debated asking to postpone the op, given that it clashed with a scheduled family holiday - but now 'thanks God' that she didn't after what happened next.
Her surgery went well and the cyst was sent away for a biopsy, before Rachael then received a devastating call from doctors on her first day back at work.
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"They told me I needed to come in for an appointment the next day," she recalled. "I tried to re-arrange, saying I had my first few days back at school. But they insisted.
"I just got that sinking feeling. I could tell from their urgency. I went home and said to my husband, 'This isn't a good sign'."
The mum and her partner Anthony, 38, then headed to the appointment together and received the news that the lump was cancerous.
Rachael was told she has mucinous ovarian cancer - which is a rare disease diagnosed in around 200 people a year in Britain, according to Ovacome.
Rachael said: "I shut down. I was in complete shock. You just never think it's going to be you. But then I had to focus on next steps.
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"The consultant said to me: 'You're young, you're a mum, we want to give you the best chance, we're going to act quickly'.
"He said they were going to do another surgery to make sure everything cancerous was gone and then do chemotherapy. It was lucky I was Stage 1 as surgery isn't effective at Stage 2.
"So again, I keep thinking what would have happened if there had been any more delays."
In October 2024, Rachael underwent a 'major' surgery at a London hospital where doctors removed her ovaries, uterus, fallopian tubes, and cervix so that there was 'nowhere the cancer could return to'.
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Despite facing a gruelling recovery, the operation was a success and there was no more cancer detected, so the mum is now receiving chemotherapy to ensure there are no cancerous cells in her blood.
She explained that this treatment 'isn't as scary as you think', but admitted she found losing her hair 'awful'.
"It's such a big part of you, so it's really hard to accept," Rachael said."I cried so much when I realised I had to shave it all off. But my husband Anthony came with me and shaved his too."
She is now fundraising in the hopes of affording a holiday to Disneyland with their four children so they can look forward to something.
Rachael said: "Before, that would be something we could have achieved through saving. But the cancer has been hard on us financially as I've been off work and Anthony had to stop working to run the house and look after the kids.
"My boss has been amazing and I've received such great support but of course it only lasts so long. And Anthony, who's a courier, is self-employed - so he doesn't get any benefits.
"I want to do something as a family once my treatment is over. Hopefully we can get there. And also, by speaking out about my story, maybe one woman will get those symptoms checked. That would be worth it."
She explained that there needs to be 'more awareness' about rare cancers such as mucinous ovarian cancer, especially as there 'isn't any screening that can pick this type up'.
You can check out Rachael's GoFundMe here.
Olivia Burke