A WOMAN from Reading who had her ovaries removed and gave birth to a "miracle baby" is warning others about the dangers of ovarian cancer.
New mum Marta Wojcik wants to add her voice to Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month this March, after the disease, usually associated with older women, threatened to rob her of starting a family.
The 36-year-old accountant says doctors blamed her symptoms — bloating and abdominal pain — on stress, irritable bowel syndrome and food intolerance, believing she was too young to have the disease.
It was only after a fertility scan discovered that something more serious could be at play that further testing was carried out and it was revealed that Marta, aged just 32 at the time, in fact had stage three ovarian cancer.
As part of her treatment Marta had her ovaries removed, but she sought a second opinion on keeping her womb so that she could start fertility treatment and the decision paid off.
Nearly five years after diagnosis, she is in remission and is mother to an eight month old boy.
Marta describes her son as a “miracle baby” and wants to share her story to show that women of any age can get ovarian cancer and that the symptoms, often vague and easy to be confused with other conditions, should not be brushed off.
She has since become a trustee of the ovarian cancer support charity Ovacome, which has come up with the B.E.A.T. acronym to help women remember the main symptoms of the disease, which if new and persistent should be checked out:
B is for bloating that does not come and go;
E is for eating difficulties and feeling full more quickly;
A is for abdominal and pelvic pain you feel most days;
T is for toilet changes in urination or bowel habits.
Marta, who moved to the UK from Poland 16 years ago, is helping Ovacome to spread the awareness message and to reach the British Polish community with material on symptoms and a support line — 0121 647 6633 — in their preferred language.
Ovacome also has awareness materials and support lines in Arabic, Bengali, Gujarati, Punjabi and Urdu as part of its outreach to communities in the UK.
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Marta said: “I feel very strongly that women of all ages need to be aware that ovarian cancer can affect them and not just those who are post menopausal.
“I never knew the symptoms and was happy to accept the explanations that various doctors were giving me.
“Now I know that I had two of the main signs of ovarian cancer and could have requested a simple blood test from my GP, which can indicate if further testing is needed. I want to urge other women to return to their GP if they feel they may have been misdiagnosed.
“When I was told that I had ovarian cancer it was a complete shock. I was young, ate well, was super fit — running 10K several times a week, as well as being a gym member and taking part in four fitness classes a week — and there was no cancer in my family."
If you are concerned about ovarian cancer contact Ovacome’s freephone support line on 0800 008 7054 or visit ovacome.org.uk.
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