Maria Bailey, 55, from Pencoed, was diagnosed with cervical cancer earlier this year after initially dismissing her symptoms as menopause. She has since launched Bailey's Bags, an initiative providing practical items to cancer patients undergoing treatment.
Unexplained exhaustion and bleeding
Maria's symptoms began with sudden bouts of exhaustion. At first, she attributed them to taking on extra hours at the electrical company where she worked.
"My other half was like: 'What's the matter with you?'" Maria recalled. "I didn't have a clue. It wasn't like me – I like to think I am quite active. I was part of a walking football team and I had also taken on some more shifts at work so I just thought it was down to that."
From July 2025, Maria experienced hot flushes and spotting, which she initially believed were connected to the menopause. Her GP prescribed patches and tablets. However, towards the end of the year and into the beginning of 2026, the bleeding returned, becoming what she described as "horrendous".
"I was losing so much blood that I was turning a shade whiter than Caspar," she said. The blood clots were so large that Maria referred to them as "little baby seals because of the size of them".
Diagnosis and treatment
Although Maria was due to have a smear test in May, she returned to her GP in February. "I just knew something wasn't right," she said. "It was sort of a gut feeling."
Taking photographs of the blood clots to show her doctor prompted a series of investigations including a biopsy, MRI scan and PET-CT scan. On April 22, while driving home along the M4, Maria received a phone call from her doctor. Scans had revealed a 4cm cancerous tumour. Maria had cervical cancer, and doctors confirmed the disease had spread locally, although it had not reached her vital organs.
Maria kept her scans private from family and friends, including her twin sister Tracy, not wanting to worry them. She eventually told them in person, bringing her chihuahua Lady, which lightened the mood. She gave her tumour the nickname "Winnie the Walnut".
Bailey's Bags initiative
Maria underwent 25 sessions of radiotherapy over five weeks, weekly chemotherapy, and brachytherapy. One week into treatment, she came up with the idea for Bailey's Bags, after struggling to find practical information about what to take to hospital.
The bags contain items such as a fleece blanket, ginger tea, a neck pillow, pear drops, a large water bottle, a backpack with a power bank, a medicine organiser box, and a fold-up portable fan. The contents were shaped by feedback from cancer patients at Singleton Hospital in Swansea.
Maria invested the first £500 from her own money and launched a GoFundMe campaign. Donations have surpassed £3,500. So far, she has donated 22 bags to Swansea Bay Health Charity and 22 to Velindre Cancer Centre.
"It has been so rewarding, hearing the feedback," Maria said. "There is this lovely lady who is currently undergoing treatment in Velindre. She was issued the very first Bailey's bag and her daughter text me to say thank you – she was over the moon."
Future plans and advice
Maria hopes to expand Bailey's Bags to support anyone undergoing chemotherapy, regardless of gender or location. "Not just in Wales but across the UK. I want every person starting treatment to know they're not facing it alone," she said.
Maria is now awaiting follow-up appointments and scans later this year. Doctors have told her the tumour has shrunk. Her advice to others: "Just listen to your body. If something's not right go to your doctors and be persistent... never ever miss your smear test."
