A mother of three who thought she had drunk off milk has been told she has just a year to live after her stomach became paralysed. Emilie Cullum, 36, from St Albans, Hertfordshire, began vomiting in November 2024 after eating a bowl of cereal, initially blaming expired milk.
When the sickness persisted for 10 days, she went to A&E where doctors diagnosed Crohn's disease. However, after continuing to struggle with eating and vomiting, she sought a private consultation in February 2025. Tests revealed she had gastroparesis, a chronic condition causing partial stomach paralysis.
By the end of summer 2025, the aesthetic clinic owner's weight had plummeted from 8st 5lb to 4st 8lb. The NHS has now placed her on palliative care as she is unable to gain weight. Emilie said: 'The thought of having to leave my children is horrific, it's unthinkable.'
Emilie had a permanent feeding tube fitted last summer and has gained 14lbs but cannot put on more weight. She is fundraising for private Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN) treatment, which delivers nutrients directly into the bloodstream, to allow her to be treated at home rather than in hospital for three-month stretches. She needs to reach 6st 9lb; her current weight is 5st 4lb.
Emilie, married to golf teacher Kyle Cullum, 41, said: 'It's hard, the children are growing up and we thought we were going to have all these years... I don't want to go into hospital knowing that I don't have that much time left and not spending it with my family.' A friend has set up a GoFundMe page to help fund her treatment.
