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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
Lifestyle
John Bett & Sophie Collins

Woman told her symptoms were 'stress' related before devastating cancer diagnosis

A young woman who was told her symptoms of ill health were simply a result of stress, has since been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer.

Mollie Mulheron, 24, collapsed in a supermarket after having recently returned from the Galapagos Islands - where she began experiencing symptoms.

Despite having difficulty with breathing, to the point that she almost drowned while snorkelling, doctors had told her that the issues were 'in her head'.

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After she returned to the UK she ended up collapsing in public and was rushed to hospital – where doctors diagnosed her with a 15cm tumour which was located over her heart and lungs.

Now, Mollie has been given a diagnosis of stage four non-Hodgkins lymphoma and says she still can't comprehend what's happened.

Mollie said: "That was the worst news of my life, I can't even explain how it felt now.

"I just cried and screamed and screamed – it was out of nowhere, I knew something was wrong but I didn't think it was that wrong.

"I'm waiting to hear how much it's spread. It doesn't mean I'm going to die tomorrow but it means treatment needs to start now.

Mollie's symptoms were initially dismissed as related to stress (Mollie Mulheron, SWNS)

"They've given me an injection to try and preserve my fertility so kids aren't out of the question - it's put me in early menopause, it's the worst part for me as I always wanted to be a mum."

The young woman, from Skipton, Leeds, had travelled to the Galapagos Islands to pursue her dream of travelling.

She worked as an English teacher while she was out there and enjoyed exploring the tropical islands.

However, she began to experience strange symptoms, including trouble breathing and swallowing.

She was told there weren't enough students for her to teach, so she booked a flight home on February 4 – but within 48 hours of touching down in the UK, she collapsed and began throwing up in a supermarket.

She was on holiday when she started to feel unwell (Mollie Mulheron/ SWNS)

An ambulance was called and Mollie was rushed to hospital where she underwent blood tests, X-ray, and CT scans.

She was given the heart-breaking new that the tumour had been affecting her heart – and was told the reason she kept collapsing was that she was repeatedly having heart attacks.

Doctors prescribed steroids to stop the tumour from growing anymore, and due to the advanced state of the tumour Mollie swiftly began chemotherapy.

"I've been fit and healthy my whole life, I've always been completely fine – I don't know what has caused this, I'm healthy and young, three weeks ago I was in Galapagos living my best life", said Mollie.

"I still can't comprehend it now - [when I was told] I was screaming to my mum about my future plans, how I wanted to be a mum and get married, all I could do was stare at the wall and cry and scream.

"The doctors immediately put me on steroids to stop the growth of the tumour while they tried to figure out what was going on.

Mollie collapsed soon after she got home (Mollie Mulheron/ SWNS)

"They couldn't start treatment until they knew exactly what it was so I was waiting for the biopsy to come back.

"When I finally got the results, it wasn't what we hoped for – it's non-Hodgkin's lymphoma which is rare and aggressive.

"The doctors seem hopeful they can treat it and say the success rate for the type of cancer I have is good and it looks hopeful.

"The only sad thing is that it's stage four which means it's on both sides of my chest and has spread to other parts of my body.

"I started chemo and had a bad reaction to the first treatment, but the doctors said it was because they started it too fast, and after that it was okay, I just had a few side effects like headaches.

"The doctors say there are a lot of treatments they can try because I'm young, fit, and healthy."

For more information, you can visit Mollie's GoFundMe here.

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