A Folkestone mum who put her symptoms down to the menopause has spoken out after being diagnosed with cervical cancer.
Michelle Griggs, 50, recently spoke out about the warning signs she had dismissed, which included unusual bleeding that grew worse over two months, along with aching joints and night sweats.
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The signs persisted despite the social club manager being kept up to date with her smear tests and receiving the all-clear just months before her diagnosis.
"It must have developed really quickly, and I'm very lucky that it was stage one, so it was caught at a very early stage," she said.
Michelle had been staying on top of her smear tests
|GETTY / NHS / EAST KENT HOSPITALS UNIVERSITY
"I really thought it was the menopause, because everything matched what I had read online," Michelle said of her symptoms, which became increasingly severe over time.
"I felt really drained, and I thought I'd better get it checked out, and thankfully I did."
Following her first scan, she called the next day for results and was asked to come in straight away.
"Immediately I knew it wasn't going to be good news," Michelle recalled. "I remember leaving that appointment feeling really dazed; it didn't really sink in."
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Things moved swiftly after doctors put together a treatment plan within a fortnight of her diagnosis.
Michelle faced an intensive treatment regime that included chemotherapy, radiotherapy and brachytherapy – a procedure involving small radiation-containing rods placed near her cervix.
For two months, she attended Kent and Canterbury Hospital five days a week for radiotherapy sessions.
As she doesn't drive, Michelle had relied on her friends and family to get her to appointments.
She kept working throughout when she felt up to it, supported by her colleagues and club members.
"I needed something to keep me busy, and something that meant I wasn't sitting at home thinking," she explained.
"Two really good friends came to my appointments and treatments with me, and the whole experience would have been a lot worse without them."
Michelle received the all-clear in September and will have regular check-ups going forward to ensure the cancer hasn't returned.
Michelle is urging others to 'get anything suspicious checked out' straight away
|GETTY
She's full of praise for the medical teams who looked after her throughout.
"The hospital teams were fantastic, they were always there when I needed them, and I can't fault them at all," she said. "The Macmillan nurses were brilliant, and really helped with what support is available."
Now, backing Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, Michelle has a clear message for others.
"Get anything suspicious checked out straight away, or you may not be as lucky as I was, and don't be afraid to ask for help."
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