A WOMAN who thought she was bloated had her life turned upside down when doctors told her what it really was.
Natasha Inman had “no symptoms” before doctors revealed she had four cysts on her ovaries totalling 40cm in size.
Jam Press/Natasha InmanNatasha Inman initially thought she was just bloated[/caption]
Jam Press/Natasha InmanDocs discovered she had four cysts on her ovaries which turned out to be cancerous[/caption]
After undergoing a caesarean section to remove the growths, tests revealed they were cancerous.
The 31-year-old finance worker told MailOnline: “I was just a bit bloated, but I never would have gone to the doctors about it — it wasn’t affecting my life very much.
“Looking back now, I did struggle at the gym for about three months, especially anything that involved lying on my stomach.”
Doctors said the combined mass of the cysts were the same size as if she had been 5-6 months pregnant.
On May 4, she was diagnosed with stage 1 grade 3 germ cell teratoma ovarian cancer.
Stage 1 means the cancer is only in the ovary and has not spread to the fallopian tube or womb.
Grade three means the cancer is growing quickly.
Germ cell ovarian tumours are also known as ovarian cysts and begin in the ovarian cells that develop into eggs, most are non-cancerous.
Symptoms include tummy pain, bloating and irregular periods.
They are rare and usually affect girls and young women up to their early 30s but surgery is needed to remove the tumours.
Fearing her looming chemotherapy would impact her fertility, Natasha, from Leeds, had her eggs frozen.
By the end of May, just a few weeks after being diagnosed, Natasha began the first of four cycles of chemo which will end in early August.
At the end of her treatment, the 31-year-old will have her ovaries and fallopian tube removed.
Reflecting on her ordeal, Natasha, who has since lost her hair, said treatment has been “really hard”.
But she adds: “I am lucky that I caught it early so I can heal and get better.”
Jam Press/Natasha InmanNatasha started her chemo treatment in May[/caption]
Jam Press/Natasha InmanShe says she finds the treatment ‘hard’ but is thankful it was discovered early enough[/caption] Read More