Fay shares her story
I was extremely lucky in my case as the PMP was only picked up on an ultrasound scan I was attending for an overactive bladder. There was a shadow the doctors initially thought was a cyst. Following appointment after appointment at Clatterbridge Hospital and Arrow Park Hospital to diagnose this, CT scans showing the cyst getting bigger with each scan and a final scan showing fluid in my pelvis, the doctors thought I had a burst cyst. An MRI scan showed the fluid still there after 2 months where it should have been absorbed by then should it have been a cyst. I was finally referred to The Christie Hospital in Manchester where straight away doctors diagnosed it as PMP. I was told I would need a full hysterectomy as well as gall bladder, appendix, tissue behind my abdomen scraping of my liver and maybe bowel all removed and then a hot chemo rinse (HIPEC).
Having just turned 28 with no children yet, I chose to keep my womb and my left ovary and underwent hormone treatment and had my eggs frozen before to the operation.
The operation was successful and I cannot thank team at the Christie and my amazing family enough for their skill hard work and on-going support, It was so strange being told I was going to need surgery when I felt fine! I was so lucky it was caught so early on in an unrelated scan!!!
I was up and out of hospital after a week and a half and went on to run my first marathon in 2014! I am a year and a half into my 5 year follow up stretch, where I have a CT scan every 6 months to ensure the PMP does not return.
In case you missed it...
I was shocked by my pseudomyxoma peritonei diagnosis
Being diagnosed with pseudomyxoma peritonei (or PMP) came as a huge shock. It was discovered accidentally as my usual yearly bloods showed abnormalities.
I had flu-like symptoms and was diagnosed with PMP
Initially, I had flu-like symptoms with pain in all the joints in my body followed by bad abdominal pain that did not go away.
I thought I had a kidney infection
I feel great. I was worried about catching colds and things without my spleen but I’m as healthy as I was before. My son and husband have caught colds but I have not which is normal for us. I have caught a sickness bug from my son since surgery but I recovered quickly with no problems and again compared to what I’ve been through, it felt like nothing.
This is me 100 percent. I was pregnant with my very first child during it all!!!