A young woman from Fife, Scotland, claims doctors dismissed her extreme tiredness and prolonged bleeding for a year as typical teenage behaviour, only to later discover she had leukaemia.
Initial Symptoms and Holiday Incident
Sophia Maclaren first visited a GP in August 2024, complaining of constant fatigue and loss of appetite. Her condition worsened when she fainted during a family holiday in Cyprus in October 2024. Initially thought to be sunstroke, she received treatment at a local hospital before returning home.
Back in the UK, the then-17-year-old continued to suffer from severe tiredness, nausea, and dizziness. She returned to her GP repeatedly over the next five months, visiting every two to three weeks. However, she says her symptoms were consistently attributed to her menstrual cycle or simply being a teenage girl.
Dismissed Concerns
Sophia reported that she mentioned to a doctor that she had been bleeding for nearly a year, but this was dismissed as a side effect of her contraceptive implant. It was only when she developed lower back pain and a doctor inquired about chest pain that she was referred to a hospital for further tests.
On March 7, 2025, Sophia was diagnosed with leukaemia. She underwent two rounds of chemotherapy and was discharged in August 2025, now cancer-free.
Raising Awareness
Sophia credits her mother for persistently advocating for her health, stating, “If my mum wasn’t as pushy as she was, I don’t know what would have happened. She just knew I wasn’t okay and wasn’t going to take no for an answer.”
Now in remission, Sophia attends check-ups every three months and has monthly blood tests to monitor for recurrence. She is sharing her story to prevent other young people from being similarly dismissed.
“I had every symptom on the NHS list for leukaemia,” she said. “Don’t take dismissal for an answer. You know your body better than anyone else. If you think something is wrong, something is 100% wrong.”
Sophia believes her age and gender contributed to the initial misdiagnosis, urging young women especially to be persistent in seeking medical attention.
