A Young Woman's Harrowing Battle with Bowel Cancer Before Age 30
A young woman has revealed how an 18-month ordeal of persistent constipation, vomiting, and loss of appetite turned out to be advanced bowel cancer, leaving her fighting for her life before reaching the age of 30. Charlotte Rutherford, now 32 and living in Bristol, was just 26 and residing in Australia when she received the devastating diagnosis.
Severe Symptoms and Delayed Recognition
Ms Rutherford experienced such severe symptoms that she was often unable to eat and would sometimes vomit for hours after meals, leading to dramatic weight loss. Despite the intensity of her symptoms, they came and went intermittently, making it harder to recognise the seriousness of her condition. It was only when these symptoms became constant that she was rushed to hospital as an emergency, where doctors delivered the shocking news that she was just 48 hours away from dying.
Recalling her arrival at the hospital, Ms Rutherford said: 'I was so constipated. But all I can remember is the severe nausea, because, essentially, I was so blocked up and had been for a long time, it was kind of poisoning me.'
Urgent Diagnosis and Treatment
After being admitted, Ms Rutherford underwent a CT scan that revealed a major obstruction in her bowel requiring urgent surgery. During this critical time, doctors inquired about a family history of bowel cancer. 'I said: 'I don't have cancer, do I?'. And they were like: 'We don't know yet, but we'll find out',' she recalled.
Within 24 hours of arriving at the hospital, Ms Rutherford was in surgery to remove the obstruction for biopsy. The results returned within a week, confirming she had advanced bowel cancer that doctors believed may have been developing since she was just 21. Diagnosed with stage 3B disease because it had spread to her lymph nodes, she underwent surgery to remove the large tumour and affected lymph nodes, followed by 12 weeks of preventative chemotherapy via drip and oral tablets.
Remission and a Devastating Recurrence
After completing her treatment programme in April 2021, Ms Rutherford was told she was in remission. She returned to the UK hoping to rebuild her life, and for a time, things felt normal again. Regular scans showed no signs of cancer, and by early 2023 she felt 'so fit and so healthy'.
However, just nine days after a routine scan in February 2023, her world was turned upside down once more. 'They said, 'Your surgeon would like to see you next week'… I was like, I've never been called in before, so that can't be good news,' Ms Rutherford explained. Doctors confirmed the cancer had returned, this time in her lung, marking her second diagnosis before turning 30. The disease was now stage 4, having spread from its original location in the bowel.
Fertility Concerns and Further Treatment
Facing more chemotherapy, Ms Rutherford feared it could leave her unable to have children, as the drugs can shut down the ovaries. 'We spoke about treatment options, and normally, the NHS will say that anyone who's had a recurrence has to have another round of chemo. But I was 29 at the time, and fertility was a really big factor,' she said. 'I essentially had to weigh up whether it meant more to me to not have chemo and protect my fertility, or have chemo and reduce my chance of the cancer coming back.'
Fortunately, as the tumour was small, Ms Rutherford was able to have it removed through keyhole surgery in April 2023. After two weeks of bed rest, she gradually rebuilt her fitness before being told she was in remission again in August 2023.
Emotional Toll and Raising Awareness
Though now looking forward to the future, the experience has taken a significant emotional toll on Ms Rutherford. 'Because I was so young, you're around an age group where people are progressing with other areas of their life, like buying houses and work and stuff. You just feel so behind where everyone else is, for something that is just so out of your control,' she shared.
Now working for a cancer charity, she is determined to raise awareness that bowel cancer, which kills around 17,700 people in the UK each year, can also affect young people. The NHS lists symptoms including changes in bowel habits, blood in the stool, stomach pain, bloating, or unexplained weight loss. While older people are most at risk, statistics from Bowel Cancer UK show that more than 2,500 people under 50 are diagnosed annually in the UK.
'There isn't quite that awareness still that this can happen to young people,' Ms Rutherford emphasised. 'I think that just raising awareness of the symptoms and making sure people have the confidence to get checked if something doesn't feel right… To not have that immediate thought of: 'You're too young to have bowel cancer' is important.'
Campaign Support and Life Perspective
During Bowel Cancer Awareness Month, Bowel Cancer UK and pharmaceutical firm Takeda UK are spotlighting their Stage4You campaign, addressing the challenges of living with stage 4 bowel cancer. For Ms Rutherford, this campaign has been valuable as it 'acknowledges the mental toll of what we're going through, and gives us that acknowledgement to be able to just take some time, and to see that life doesn't just go on as normal sometimes.'
Reflecting on her journey, she said: 'I think my whole perspective on life changed (after cancer). I say yes to more things. I make sure that all of the time I have is spent doing things that I actually want to do. You realise that, really, things can change so quickly – so don't sweat the small stuff – live life how you want to live.'
