A nan said she was left feeling "devastated" and "depressed" after twice attending hospital alone to be told she had cancer.
Debbie O'Sullivan, 53, had been shielding and attending appointments by herself for what she first thought was a water infection in May last year.
After 12-months of experiencing blood in her urine and only being given antibiotics, her daughter told her to ring the 111 NHS helpline.
The nan from Bootle said: "I was actually weeing blood. This went on for 12-months as I kept getting told it was a water infection.
"The antibiotics I was getting from my GP were taking away the pain and stopping the bleeding but it would come back again.
"This one time I didn't feel too good and my daughter made me phone the NHS helpline. They looked at my records and said you've had quite a lot of these infections so we need to investigate this a little bit more."
Still believing she was suffering from a water infection, Debbie attended an appointment alone - as is the current NHS guidance - to have tests at Aintree Hospital.
Debbie was given the devastating news that she had bladder cancer.
She had surgery to remove the tumour and a routine check up in September gave her the all clear.
Afterwards she continued to shield away from her children and grandchildren.
However, in a double blow, at another routine check up last week which she attended alone she was given more heartbreaking news.
Debbie said: "I had a routine check up last week and they told me the bladder cancer had returned. I was so upset because twice in lockdown I've had to go on my own to be told such bad news.
"Having no one with me and being told you have cancer - which is horrific anyway - but to be on your own and have no family with me was really upsetting.
"I was devastated, I was totally in shock. I'd been off work and I thought if I get the all clear now I can go back after shielding. The news left me so depressed.
"I had breast cancer in 2006 and I went through seven months of chemotherapy and five weeks of radiotherapy. But I had my family and children and support of everyone."
She added: "I am upset because I don't know the outcome of this one as the cancer is now in two places in my bladder."
Debbie is booked in to have an operation on Monday to have the tumours removed and will then have follow up chemotherapy treatment.
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Despite her experiences and upset at having to receive the devastating diagnosis alone not once, but twice, Debbie is still full of praise for her treatment at the hands of the doctors and nurses in the NHS.
Recently, with the relaxation of lockdown restrictions, she has also been able to see more of her daughter whose support, she said, "has been amazing".
She added: "The NHS have been amazing with me. I see them getting slated on the news yesterday, saying hospital appointments have been cancelled and operations have been cancelled but I can't fault them - they've been absolutely amazing to me."
