Teacher, 33, who suffered irregular periods and feared she was infertile, was actually battling womb cancer
WHEN Vaishali Bamania started trying for a baby and couldn’t become pregnant she thought she had fertility problems.
But a trip to the doctor revealed the devastating news she had womb cancer.
The nursery school teacher, from Preston, Lancashire was diagnosed with endometrial cancer in April after experiencing irregular periods, which she initially put down to stress.
Vaishali, 33, admitted she would have ignored her unusual symptoms had she not been eager to start trying for a baby.
Womb cancer is the fourth most common cancer diagnosed in women, and is the most common gynaecological cancer.
Vaishali said: “I didn’t realise it was so common.
“More women get it than even cervical cancer.
“There’s not an awful lot of awareness about it, especially in young women.
“It typically affects people after menopause, which did make my make case unusual though.
“Cervical cancer has been in the press a lot because of the former Big Brother star Jade Goody, but there is much less awareness of womb cancer and I want that to change.”
Vaishali, married to business analyst Rahul, 33, started trying for a baby nine months after the pair got married.
Her periods were irregular and she was also experiencing spotting between her periods.
But she thought it was caused by polycystic ovaries, which can make conceiving difficult.
She said: ““We’d only been trying for a few months, but I didn’t want to get further down the line and find out there was a problem which was related to me.
“So, I decided to tackle it early and pestered the doctor to take notice.”
Initially, the GP suggested taking a hormone tablet, like the Pill, to clear up the spotting.
“But I wanted to get pregnant and thought that was just plastering over the problem, so asked for a referral to hospital,” she said.
ARE YOU AT RISK? Being fat increases your risk of womb cancer… but do YOU know how to spot the signs?
“I thought my periods being irregular was probably due to stress, as I’d moved to Preston from London, but I thought I’d double check.”
At Exton Hall Hospital in Chorley, Lancashire, in December last year X-rays showed a polyp – a small benign growth – on her uterus.
Combined with a blocked fallopian tube, she believed this was the cause of her infertility.
By this point, she had been trying for a baby for around nine months and was not unduly worried.
She was referred to the same hospital for laser surgery to remove the polyp under general anaesthetic in March this year.
Vaishali said: “I was nervous but, again, not worried.
“I didn’t think it would be anything. After all, apart from my periods being irregular and heavy, I hadn’t had any symptoms.”
WHAT IS WOMB CANCER?
Womb cancer is one of the most common types of women’s cancers, with more than 8,000 new cases in the UK each year.
Cancer of the uterus is the most common type of female reproductive cancer and the fourth most common cancer diagnosed in women, behind breast cancer, lung cancer and bowel cancer.
Symptoms:
The most common symptom of womb cancer is abnormal bleeding from the vagina.
As most women who are diagnosed have been through the menopause, any vaginal bleeding will be unusual.
In women who haven’t been through the menopause, periods may be heavier than usual or women may experience bleeding between periods.
Less common symptoms include:
- pain in the lower abdomen
- pain during sex
- pain in the back
- loss of appetite
- tiredness
- nausea
Cause:
The exact cause of womb cancer is not known, but certain things can increase a woman’s chance of getting it.
The NHS says these factors can increase a woman’s chance of developing womb cancer:
- age
- oestrogen
- hormone replacement therapy
- being overweight or obese
- not having children
- diabetes
- polycystic ovaries
- endometrial hyperplasia
During surgery about seven polyps were discovered and these were removed and samples sent away for testing at a laboratory.
“I went to my parents’ home in Stanmore, north London, to recover,” said Vaishali.
“While there I received a phone call from the doctors ordering me back to hospital.
“They said I needed to come back and see them urgently and for someone to accompany me.”
Back at the hospital doctors told Vaishali she had stage one womb cancer, believed to be caused by a spike in oestrogen levels in her body.
She said: “As soon as they said cancer I couldn’t believe it.
“It is something no one expects or wants to hear.”
Now, she is being treated with 400mg of the medication medroxyprogesterone – a form of progesterone.
It is used to treat overgrowth of the uterine lining and endometrial hyperplasia – thickening of the womb lining – a condition that can lead to womb cancer.
Vaishali said: “Normally they try you on the tablets for six months and if they don’t have an impact they recommend a hysterectomy.
“They generally have about a 75 per cent success rate in reducing the cancer.
“However, I am hoping to keep on them for a year, as I don’t want to take away my chance of having a baby.
“I’m an unusual case, as I haven’t experienced the menopause yet.
“But I’d recommend all women experiencing any of these symptoms seriously, it’s probably nothing – but it might not be.”
September is gynaecological awareness month.
Vaishali is working with The Eve Appeal, the woman’s health charity.
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368