My sister was told she had ‘pregnancy symptoms’ – now she and her baby are fighting for their lives
A WOMAN who thought her symptoms were just due to being pregnant found out she in fact had cancer.
Julia Volkova, 38, is now fighting to stay alive for the sake of her unborn child as her sister Alina watches “helplessly”.
Symptoms like this during pregnancy mean you should urgently call a midwife, as it could be due to something serious like an ectopic pregnancy.
Alina claims Julia's symptoms were attributed to early pregnancy and she was also diagnosed with fibroids.
She was given anti-sickness medication and pain relief for the non-cancerous growths that are common in women.
But weeks later, Julia began to lose weight and her energy levels dropped - key symptoms of cancer.
When she experienced severe abdominal pain in December 2021, she went to A&E where she began bleeding internally.
Doctors observed changes to her cervix and, after an MRI and a biopsy, the family got the worst news they could have imagined.
Julia had an aggressive form of cervical cancer.
The symptoms include pain in the lower back, tummy or pelvis, pain during sex, vaginal bleeding and changes to discharge.
The NHS says for people with conditions like fibroids or endometriosis, these symptoms may already be frequent, but it’s important to get checked by a GP if things worsen.
She said: "You feel helpless. There's nothing that you can do. Of course, I can support and help as much as I can but there's nothing else that I can do.
"That's why I started this fund-raising - just to help her out a little bit, just to relieve the burden of extra worry that she has."
Alina has already received donations for Julia and said she is "eternally grateful" for the support.