A MOM claims she endured aggressive chemotherapy and said goodbye to her family after being given 15 months to live – only to discover she didn’t have cancer in the first place.
In late 2022, Lisa Monk began experiencing stomach pains that she suspected were kidney stones, so she went to the hospital for a CT scan.
Kennedy News and MediaLisa Monk said doctors misdiagnosed her with a severe form of cancer[/caption]
Kennedy News and MediaAfter receiving the bad news, Lisa Monk said she underwent several rounds of chemotherapy[/caption]
Kennedy News and MediaMonk described her chemotherapy treatment as ‘very aggressive’[/caption]
Kennedy News and MediaThe mother-of-two was shocked after learning she never had cancer in the first place[/caption]
At her appointment, the test showed she had two kidney stones but also flagged a mass on her spleen, which was removed in January 2023.
The mom-of-two said the organ was sent to three different pathology labs before being tested at a fourth lab, where she claims it tested positive for an aggressive form of blood vessel cancer.
Monk, 39, said she was told about her terminal cancer diagnosis at a check-up appointment following her spleen surgery and claims she was given an “optimistic” 15 months to live.
Monk, who works in the Department of Education in Texas, was then referred to a cancer hospital and, after attending her first appointment in March 2023, was hospitalized immediately to begin her first round of chemotherapy.
After losing all her hair, Monk underwent another round of very aggressive chemotherapy, which she said left her with silvery skin and vomiting.
But at a routine hospital appointment in April of that year, she claims this was when she was told that she never actually had cancer and the first pathology report was wrong.
Furious that doctors congratulated her rather than apologizing for their alleged blunder, Monk says she has been left in debt and with her “insides cooked” by the unnecessary chemo.
Monk, who resides in College Station, Texas, said, “It was diagnosed as a super rare, super terminal type of cancer called clear cell angiosarcoma.
“I had gone to see my doctor as a follow-up from my surgery [when I was given the news].
“I was with my mom and he asked if I was okay to get bad news in front of her. This is when he told me it was cancer.
“I went into shock. The diagnosis was horrible, and [they] told me it was terminal.
“It was a blood vessel type of cancer found in the spleen and told me that the most optimistic thing he could say was to give me 15 months [to live].”
The distraught mother continued, “After I dropped my mom off at home, I went down to the river and prayed because I wasn’t ready to go home and tell my husband.
“When I didn’t come home immediately, he found out where I was and thought someone had kidnapped me.
“He came to find me and I had to tell him the news was bad and then I had to go home and tell my two kids.
“I didn’t tell them at this point that it was terminal or I only had 15 months, I just told them it was bad, but I was going to try to fight it.
“My oldest son took it the hardest. My little girl was very good at hiding her feelings, but I found out from her teacher was getting overwhelmed about it at school.”
An angiosarcoma is a cancerous tumor found in the inner walls of blood vessels and lymph vessels, which support the immune system, according to Penn Medicine.
SHOCKING ‘MEDICAL ERROR’
Monk said the initial report that had diagnosed her with terminal cancer had been passed onto the hospital, but due to their policy, they had requested her spleen to carry out their own tests.
After her organ was tested, she claims the hospital’s test had come back clear, stating she never had cancer.
The tests also report that the hospital did not check their findings until the April appointment, which she claims was a month after they had received it.
Monk claims this led to her enduring unnecessary chemotherapy treatment, and she is now dealing with the repercussions of this as she never had cancer.
“I saw the nurse practitioner first, and she just asked me about my symptoms, and she was scrolling on the computer while she was talking to me,” Monk said.
“All of sudden, she just stops talking and has this look on her face. She turned to me and looked completely horrified and told me she needed to get the doctor and then ran out of the room.
“She left me alone for about 15 minutes, and the doctor came back in. He said a lot of medical lingo to me and then told me I didn’t have cancer.
“I was confused as they were acting like it was a bad thing. I just thought [if I didn’t have cancer], it meant the chemotherapy was working.
“The doctor then told me that I never had cancer. [At that moment] I looked like I had cancer, and I felt like I had cancer as I was vomiting, I was sick, and my skin was silvery because of the chemotherapy.”
Monk added, “The doctor then congratulated me, which really bothered me. At the time, I was in shock, but now I feel the more appropriate response would be, ‘I’m sorry.’
“I asked for a copy of their pathology report and I found a hallway to call my husband and tell him the news.
“The first pathology test I had back from the lab said I had cancer, and I started treatment based on this report, but then the hospital ordered my spleen to conduct their own pathology test as it was their policy to do so.
“When I got home, I listened back to the recording of my doctor’s appointment as I was able to record them in case I missed any information, and it dawned on me about the date they got their [the hospital] pathology report back.
“I looked at it, and it was dated a month prior to my appointment.”
“I had had chemotherapy during this time, and they could have told me a month earlier, and I would have avoided the second round of chemotherapy if they had bothered to read their own pathology report,” she said.
“[After being told I didn’t have cancer], I had to wait a couple of days, and then it was confirmed to me that it was not cancer after having a discussion with all the doctors.
“In the end, they determined that my spleen was going to rupture, which is why it had the mass on it. It was just blood vessel activity and no cancer in it.”
‘I WAS WRITING MY GOODBYES’
After being told she never had cancer, Monk said chemotherapy treatment was stopped immediately.
A year removed from the treatments, Monk is still angry about what she and her family were put through.
Monk said, “Financially, we’re still paying medical bills. Cancer is expensive, and I couldn’t get any of my bills dismissed.
“Just the emotional trauma, too. It was a very dark time.
“I was writing goodbye letters and letters to the grandchildren I would never meet and the weddings I would never attend.
“I also still looked like I had cancer. I was bold and did not appear to be well. It was a daily reminder that it was something we had all lived through.
“A year on from what happened to me, I’m angry. They ruined my health, and my insides are cooked.
“I grieve for my kids for having to even go through something like this in their lives where they thought they were going to lose their mom.
“I can’t take this away from them. I know on paper it only looks like a few months of my life, but it felt like a lifetime.”
Kennedy News and MediaA year removed from her last chemotherapy treatment, Lisa Monk said she’s still feeling the effects[/caption]“}]]