A dad whose pain was dismissed by doctors first as haemorrhoids then as Irritable Bowel Syndrome, has been given a heartbreaking cancer diagnosis.
Michael Moriarty, 36, lives with his partner Lyndsey and their two daughters, seven-year-old Libby and five-year-old Phoebe, in Walton.
The cleaner said he initially went to the doctor about the issues around eight years ago, when he noticed blood whilst emptying his bowels.
The doctor dismissed his concerns as nothing more than haemorrhoids, a diagnosis he accepted over the next few years as the bleeding continued.
However, in March 2020, the dad of two headed to the A&E after struggling with pain while working night shifts.
Doctors at the emergency room gave him a scan, from which they determined that he was “just very constipated”.
Get all the latest news sent to your inbox. Sign up for the free Mirror newsletter
"I was coming home and doing yoga and gave myself colonic irrigation off a kit bought from Amazon. I was trying everything but I was still in a lot of pain,” he told the Liverpool Echo.
Weeks went by and Michael went back to the doctor and was now told it was likely he was suffering from Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS).
Still in pain months later and dissatisfied with the diagnosis, Michael took himself again to A&E and was given a CT scan.
When a lump was found in his bowel, further scans and tests were booked.
Following these, he was asked to come into the hospital to speak with a doctor. It was on Christmas Eve that he received the devastating news he was dreading.
Michael was diagnosed with a cancerous tumour in his bowel as well as in his liver and lung.
"When she told me I broke down,” Michael said. “I mean, I've got two young kids. It was a lot to take in."
In January this year, he underwent an intensive course of chemotherapy, which succeeded in shrinking the tumours in his liver and lung.
However, the bowel tumour remained the same.
Michael subsequently underwent a gruelling bout of radiotherapy in an attempt to try and reduce the size of the tumour.
Despite feeling positive that the treatment was working and that surgery could now be an option, he was dealt another devastating blow upon learning that the tumour in his liver and lung had gotten bigger.
Next week, he is due to start another course of chemotherapy which doctors have said has a 30% chance of working.
Michael is also fundraising to try and raise enough money for a tailored treatment only available in Germany.
During his terrible ordeal, Michael said the support he has had off his family has been incredible.
"Lyndsey has been amazing,” he said. We've got two young kids together and she's been picking up a lot of the slack because I can't do anything really.
"I don't let the kids see how ill I am. My daughter even said, 'Dad it's weird, you don't even act sick'."
"Hopefully, please god, this chemotherapy can work,” he added.
"Once I got the diagnosis everything has been quick but until you get to that point it's hard.
"They said because I was young it was IBS and nothing to worry about.
"And when I was told I had piles as a young man - I was only about 28 - it was just embarrassing really."
Following his tough experience, Michael was urging everyone to “go and get checked”.
“If you feel as if something's wrong just go,” he said.
"You know your own body better than anyone and if you feel as if something's wrong just keep going."
