Early Signs of Bowel Cancer Can Be Misleading, Warns Nurse and Patient

Talitha Akamarmoi, a 29-year-old nurse, was diagnosed with stage three colorectal cancer after experiencing symptoms of chronic fatigue and iron deficiency. Despite initial misdiagnosis, she eventually had a colonoscopy that found a 'long' tumour in her large intestine causing the issues. After laparoscopic surgery to remove her entire right half of the colon and surrounding lymph nodes, chemotherapy was required as the cancer had spread to four lymph nodes. Talitha's biggest piece of advice to all young people is to be an advocate for your health because bowel cancer isn't just an 'old person's disease'.