Debbie’s story
Debbie, 57, was diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian cancer in August 2021 after she started suffering from symptoms of feeling bloated and struggling to eat and drink. She was referred to The Royal Marsden and put under the care of Dr Angela George and her incredible team where she started chemotherapy treatment almost immediately.
After 6 cycles of treatment every 3 weeks to try and reduce the tumours as much as possible, whilst dressed in a different specially made outfit for each session, Debbie had her final treatment on 15th December. She was back to The Royal Marsden in January 2022 and underwent a full hysterectomy surgery to ensure any remaining tumours were removed. The surgery went well and Debbie was told that the team managed to remove all the remaining tumours. She recovered well at home and on the 1st March 2022 moved onto maintenance treatment.
Debbie was born and raised in Zimbabwe and moved to London in the 1980s.
We were due to fly out to Sweden in August but a few weeks beforehand, I started feeling ill and suffering from bloating. I could barely eat a teaspoon of food and was struggling to drink properly. I decided to get checked out by my GP and they asked me to come in so they could examine me in person. I was still doing all my usual day to day activities so didn’t think it was anything serious. My GP arranged some blood tests and the results the following week showed that my thyroid, kidneys and liver were all fine but my CA125 markers were alarmingly high. My GP referred me to have a pelvic ultrasound. I still didn’t think this would result in anything sinister. When they confirmed it was definitely ovarian cancer, it felt as though my whole world was crumbling.
When I got to The Royal Marsden on 20th August, I met Dr Angela George who is absolutely amazing. She said to me that although I had stage 3 ovarian cancer, they had devised a curative treatment plan for me which would consist of 6 cycles of chemotherapy and surgery. She told me we would take it step by step and that the teams were aiming to cure me. I felt so hopeful and so reassured that this was not the end for me. At this stage, my belly had grown even more, and I felt very uncomfortable. It turned out that the cause of this bloating was due to the ascites which is a condition in which fluid collects in the spaces within the abdomen and this fluid was pushing down on all my organs. The first thing that happened when I got to The Royal Marsden after my consultation with Dr Angela George, was to arrange the draining of this fluid. I walked into the hospital with very little mobility and came out 6 litres of fluid lighter and very mobile.
After my surgery in August 2022.
On the 1st September I started my treatment. Neoadjuvant carboplatin paclitaxel chemotherapy. They know this treatment can work for ovarian cancer and I fit the bill to start having it. I had 6 cycles of chemotherapy every 3 weeks. I loved being in the Medical Day Unit (MDU) in Chelsea for treatment and wore a different, specially made by one of my sisters, outfit for each treatment session. The chemotherapy was aiming to shrink the tumours as much as possible before surgery and the surgery was to remove anything that was still remaining.
After my surgery on 12th January 2022, they confirmed that they managed to remove all the tumours and the hysterectomy surgery went very well too. I had a little break of about four weeks and then I was back at The Marsden for more tests before moving onto my maintenance treatment in the form of tablets to be taken twice a day for a couple of years. Monitoring would also continue for some years. So, at that time, all in all, a really successful outcome.
In May 2022, we took our first family holiday after being diagnosed to the Greek island of Rhodes and in June of 2022, my partner Dan and I finally got to go to Sweden. I finally had my life back thanks to the amazing people at The Royal Marsden.
The amazing Mr Barton!
However, just four days after arriving in Sweden, I received a call from Mr Barton at The Royal Marsden to say that my recent scans had shown two masses in my abdomen (7.5 cm and 3.5 cm) - the cancer had come back. My partner and I flew back to London at the end of June for a scan and further tests.
On the 17th August 2022 I had further surgery at The Royal Marsden carried out by Mr Des Barton and his amazing team. They successfully removed the tumours but had to also remove part of my bowel. This meant I had to have a stoma (a colostomy). This was so incredibly hard to come to terms with at first but as time passed, I realised that because of Chloe, my colostomy, I was able to live my life.
Rudo, our happy full of life grandson and my partner Dan, he has been by my side all the way. Dan is my rock and my hero!
Today, I live a very happy and fulfilled life as a two time cancer survivor and conqueror. My partner Dan and I became grandparents for the very first time on the 7th November 2022. Little Rudo (Rue) is an absolute joy and I feel so grateful to The Royal Marsden for everything they have done for me.