A woman who had a nasty hangover was left horrified after discovering her symptoms were actually a sign of cancer.

Amber Orr, from Ballymena in Northern Ireland, woke up with tummy pain and extreme nausea in March 2019 and assumed it was just due to heavy drinking with friends the night before.

However, when the 24-year-old was still suffering from ‘unbearable’ pain and throwing up days later, her mother rushed her to hospital.

There, doctors discovered the social work student’s appendix had ruptured and perform emergency surgery to remove it. 

But rather than her medical ordeal being over, further tests revealed that the rupture was triggered by a cancerous tumour in her abdomen. 

Amber had been partying with friends in Belfast in spring 2019, when she was 19-years-old.

Despite brushing-off her illness the next day as the after-effects of alcohol, her symptoms lasted for another two days.

She said: ‘When I woke up feeling sick, I blamed it on being hungover.

‘But as the day progressed, I realised it wasn’t a hangover.

‘I kept getting this unbearable pain in my side and I was throwing up.’

Her mother then took her to Antrim Area Hospital when she showed no signs of getting better. 

Medics monitored Amber overnight, suspecting that she had an UTI — an infection of the urinary tract that can cause pain in the lower tummy.

But after spending another 48 hours in hospital, she was rushed into surgery because her appendix — a finger-shaped organ with no known function — had burst. It’s usually not clear what causes an appendicitis. 

Amber underwent further tests and was sent home.

She assumed her health woes were over until two weeks later when she got a call from the hospital, asking her to come back in.

Once she arrived, medics sat her down and told her that test results showed she had a cancerous neuroendocrine mass — a rare tumour the can develop in many of the body’s organs.

Amber’s had been located in her appendix, before it was removed, and had also spread to her bowel.

Around 6,000 people in the UK and more than 12,000 in the US are diagnosed with the cancer every year.

Symptoms depend on where the tumour is located. Those in the bowel can trigger diarrhoea, constipation and tummy pains. 

Amber said she had ‘never thought’ that she had cancer.

She added: ‘I didn’t feel anything. It was more of a numbness. I didn’t properly digest the information until months later.

‘Cancer is a such a taboo word and subject and to hear it out loud is such a surreal thing.

‘My diagnosis also happened so fast that I honestly didn’t have time to even think about what was happening to me until the whole thing was over.’

Doctors told her that she would require surgery to remove the tumour and chemotherapy to kill any surviving cells.

But the procedure in May 2019, which removed half of her bowel, successfully cleared her of the cancer — meaning she didn’t require further treatment.

She has now been in remission for four years.

However, it continues to impact her mental health.

She said: ‘I can’t count the number of hours I’ve spent crying and breaking down because of how cancer has made me feel.

‘Whether that be physically, from the scars on my body, or mentally, from the anxiety and depression from treatment and fear of it returning.

‘You don’t realise just how much cancer impacts your mental health.

‘My mental health didn’t take a hit until after I was in remission.’

Amber is now using her experience to raise awareness of the long-term effects of cancer and the importance of early detection.

She said: ‘If my appendix hadn’t burst, I wouldn’t have found my cancer until it was terminal.

‘I try to use my story to encourage others to check themselves and listen to their bodies.

‘I also want to give them the confidence to book appointments and stand up for themselves when they feel something isn’t right.

‘Cancer doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t matter your age, gender, or race.

‘I want to give back to the places that helped, like the Teenage Cancer Trust and Young Lives vs. Cancer, by fundraising, because without the help of their social workers and nurses, I know for a fact I couldn’t have made it out the other side.’

Amber will be starting her degree in social work this month.

She added: ‘I am looking forward to getting my degree and hopefully becoming a social worker for the NHS, working specifically with cancer patients.

‘If I can help even one person the way that they helped me, I know that I’ll be doing something right.

‘As much as cancer has changed my life, it doesn’t define who I am.

‘It shouldn’t get to take over my life and make me afraid to live.’

A New Jersey woman was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer at age 28 after doctors dismissed her symptoms as ‘part of pregnancy.’

Kelly Spill, now 31, was eight months pregnant with her first child when she started having constipation and blood in her stool. 

Her doctors assured her it was normal, as she was so close to giving birth. But after eight months, her bowel habits continued to worsen. Still, doctors insisted the changes were from having just had a baby.

When doctors finally ordered a colonoscopy, they discovered stage three colorectal cancer, which has exploded into an epidemic in young Americans.

‘I felt very exhausted, and it made me second-guess what I was actually feeling because I was being brushed off,’ Ms Spill told TODAY.com. 

‘When you don’t have someone listening to you, it’s really, really hard to continue to keep going.’

The blood in her stool, the most common symptom young people with colorectal cancer report, was blamed on pregnancy hemorrhoids, which can affect one in three pregnant women, according to the Cleveland Clinic. 

Even after giving birth, doctors assured her it was a normal postpartum symptom. She was still constipated, and the blood in her stool was dark and sticky rather than bright red. 

Ms Spill was also in the middle of moving from California to New Jersey at the time, so she thought stress may have been to blame. 

However, when her son was five months old, her symptoms became even more concerning. She lost her appetite, becoming full after just one bite, and lost seven pounds.

Then, one day, there was ‘a pool of blood’ in the toilet. That’s when she realized something was wrong. 

At the emergency room, doctors told Ms Spill to lay off the spicy foods. 

After seeing another primary care doctor and a gastroenterologist, she finally had a colonoscopy and was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer. 

In the parking lot, she broke down crying.

Colorectal cancer rates are on the rise worldwide, especially in people who are young.  

Rates are expected to double in under-50s in the US by 2030, and colorectal cancer is also expected to become the leading cause of cancer deaths in Americans under 50 by the end of the decade. 

This is based on data from JAMA Surgery, which found that between 2010 and 2030, colon cancer will have increased by 90 percent in people ages 20 to 34. Rectal cancer will have spiked by 124 percent in the same age group.

Cancers of the colon and rectum are the third most common type in the US and the third leading cause of death in both men and women.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates about 153,000 colorectal cancer cases will be detected this year, including 19,500 among those under 50 years old.

Some 52,550 people are expected to die from the disease.

Experts are still working to unravel the cause of this devastating epidemic. 

They have commonly blamed unhealthy diets, alcohol consumption, and sedentary lifestyles on this shift.

A study from the Cleveland Clinic suggested that eating red meat and sugar could lead to a higher chance of young people developing colorectal cancer.  

However, some research suggests otherwise. 

A 2021 study, for example, found that early-onset cancer patients were less likely to be obese or be smokers than their older counterparts. 

A study published in April examined how being born via C-section influenced the chance of developing early-onset colorectal cancer. The researchers found that females born via C-section were more likely to develop colorectal cancer earlier in life than those born vaginally. There was no association among males.

Additionally, antibiotic use has been shown to impact this risk. One study in the journal Gut found that prolonged antibiotic use increased the risk of early-onset colon cancer. However, it was also associated with a lower risk of rectal cancer. 

And one study showed that the fungus Cladosporium sp. was more common in the tumors of young patients than in older individuals.

It’s still unclear how Cladosporium sp. could lead to this increase in cases, but the researchers think it could damage cell DNA. This could turn them into cancerous cells. 

These environmental factors have a lasting impact on the gut microbiome, which experts think could increase the risk of colorectal cancer, even when exposure is limited to early life. 

At the time of her diagnosis, doctors told Ms Spill it was time to preserve her eggs before chemotherapy and radiation so she could have another child later. She and her partner were also planning on getting married in Switzerland. When she asked the doctor if she could still do that, he said ‘absolutely not.’

As she prepared for treatment, a nurse asked her if she would be willing to participate in a clinical trial for an immunotherapy drug. If it shrunk the tumor, she could skip chemo and radiation.

The trial is still ongoing and has enrolled 42 patients so far. It involves patients receiving the medication dostarlimab via an infusion every three weeks for six months. 

Ms Spill noticed a difference after her second infusion and ‘felt great.’

After four treatments, her tumor had been slashed in half.

By the ninth treatment, the tumor was completely gone. She said it was ‘probably the best day of my life.’

Ms Spill is far from the only young patient who has had their symptoms dismissed by doctors.

Part of what makes colorectal cancer difficult to diagnose is its symptoms, which can often be attributed to other conditions. However, some stand out more than others. 

A study published earlier this year in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute found that the most reported symptoms were abdominal pain, blood in the stool, diarrhea, and iron-deficiency anemia. 

Additionally, in a 2020 survey by Colorectal Cancer Alliance, 68 percent of participants said they experienced blood in their stool. The average participant age was 42. 

The same survey also found that many patients with colorectal cancer symptoms were initially misdiagnosed or dismissed. 

Spending longer amounts of time without a diagnosis could allow colorectal cancer to advance to later stages, making it more difficult to treat. 

Ms Spill has since gotten married and had her second child, a daughter named Maya Grace. She also encourages others to speak up when they feel something isn’t right.

‘Go with your gut when you feel something is up with your body,’ she said. ‘Really advocate for yourself, continue to push.’

A toddler is lucky to be alive after she spent two months in intensive care battling a deadly infection that a doctor initially misdiagnosed as a fever.

When Melbourne mother Sandeep Kaur took her sick 16-month-old to the GP, she was told her little girl Girsirat had a fever and assured there was no need for concern.

Within three days, Girsirat’s condition deteriorated and she was rushed to hospital after her hands, lips and feet turned blue and her skin became discoloured.

Girsirat was diagnosed with strep A and spent the next two months fighting for life in an intensive care unit suffering from various complications, including kidney failure, necrosis on her fingertips and severe swelling which left her unable to walk. 

Her experience comes as authorities issue an urgent warning about the infection following an unseasonal spike in severe cases across Australia.  

The bacterial infection causes sore throats, scarlet fever and skin sores, affecting 750million people worldwide and claiming 500,000 lives each year.

If left untreated, the infection can enter the blood stream and cause life-threatening sepsis.

Cases of severe strep A in Aussie children have soared more than 500 per cent since the pandemic and almost claimed Girsirat’s life.

Ms Kaur has spoken out about the harrowing ordeal in the hope other parents spot symptoms early and get a second opinion if needed.

‘It was terrible, we never expected that,’ she told Seven News.

‘It was a very hard time for us. The GP said it was just a fever she’s having.’

Girsirat is still recovering from the life-threatening ordeal.

‘It was such a difficult time, our baby had drains in her leg, two operations and required dialysis for 12 days,’ Ms Kaur said. 

‘Thankfully, her fingertips were saved but she is yet to fully recover. I hope that a vaccine can be made for Strep A so no other child has to endure this.’

Strep A can cause severe life-threatening infections including toxic shock syndrome, flesh-eating disease as well as the post-infectious illnesses of acute rheumatic fever, rheumatic heart disease and kidney disease. 

The number of children admitted to hospital with strep A rose from 23 in 2020 to 107 in 2022, according to Murdoch Children’s Research Institute found.

The elderly, pregnant women and Indigenous Australians are also at high risk. 

It’s believed a combination of environmental factors and viruses in circulation has contributed to the concerning rise also seen in the northern hemisphere, despite the difference in seasons.

Reduced social contact during the pandemic may have also impacted on children’s immunity to Strep A.

‘Increases in Strep A cases have been reported around the world, occurring during, and outside of, typical spring peaks,’ Murdoch Institute’s Dr Yara-Natalie Abo said.

‘More research is needed into whether new strains might be responsible.’

‘Strep A most commonly causes mild symptoms like sore throat, but in some children it can cause life threatening sepsis which requires early recognition and treatment. The global burden of Strep A is an unmet public health challenge.’

The recent spike in strep A cases in Australia has renewed calls for a vaccine.

Murdoch Children’s Research Institute researchers are currently working towards an effective and accessible vaccine which they hope will be available to the public within five years.

‘We would like to think in the next 12 to 24 months, we could show proof of concept of a good vaccine that we can then take through to further trials,’ Professor Andrew Steer said.

‘A vaccine for strep A will save hundreds of thousands of live every year and prevent millions of infections that send children and adults to the hospital or doctor.’

By Australian Associated Press

Updated: 06:02 EDT, 23 August 2023

Toilet roll and underwear could soon come with warnings about cancer symptoms under new NHS plan

• The NHS is in talks with supermarkets about putting advice on pants and loo roll
• It plans to improve early diagnosis rates of cervical, bowel and other cancers

By Colin Fernandez

Updated: 20:47 EDT, 11 June 2023