A woman who’s scar tissue hid her cancer is encouraging women to push for their smear tests.

Caron Stevens says she did everything that doctors tell you to do. She attended regular smear tests and lived a very healthy lifestyle.

Yet she had a history of abnormal cells, and the prospect of these returning would often worry her.

Caron always attended her smear tests, but 4 years ago problems began to arise from this.

“I had to go for my smear about three times as they couldn’t get a reading as I bled every time, so they referred me to the hospital.

“They were able to get a reading at the hospital and the smear came back as normal,” she says.

However, Caron wasn’t too satisfied with this as she returned home and started to see drops of blood in her urine. This was then accompanied by intense stomach pains, and she had no choice but to go to the accident and emergency department.

“They were able to refer me to a consultant at this point and I was then sent off for an internal exam.

“At this point I questioned if I should be having a smear as well only to be told that everything looked fine and I should go for my smear as normal when invited,” she says.

Caron was sent for a colposcopy to examine her cervix, yet this result returned ‘mild’ and didn’t pick up any issues.

Prior to this she went for a smear test, which to her horror returned with a ‘high rated’ result, meaning they had detected cancer cells.

Her scar tissue had hidden these cancerous cells and left Caron questioning what was wrong with her for so long.

“I now wish that I’d have pushed for further tests as they were doing an internal anyway and it would have taken seconds for them to do a smear.

“I don’t think it’s enough to just say go for the smear, I did everything that I should’ve done, and I was told that everything looked fine.”

Since her diagnosis, Caron has undertaken various treatments, including long days of radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and brachytherapy.

“Most people don’t seem to have heard of brachytherapy, but it was actually established before some of the more popular treatments.

“It is an internal radiation therapy in which they pack you inside a bed and you are forced to stay still for hours.

“The brachytherapy nurses were phenomenal. Christies in general are phenomenal but these nurses were amazing.

“The care that they give is incredible and I cannot thank them enough,” she says

Caron is now campaigning to share her story and prevent more women from facing this terrible ordeal.

September is gynaecologic cancer awareness month, meaning it is now more important than ever to discover the truth around cervical cancer and how it can be prevented.

September is #GynaecologicalCancerAwarenessMonth

Through the month we will be sharing stories, information and support about #CervicalCancer; how it can be prevented, the signs and symptoms and support available

Find out more 👉 https://t.co/TxL31JEfGe #GCAM #GCAM2021 pic.twitter.com/s1xAhwcuJo

— Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust (@JosTrust) September 1, 2021

Girls and young women are now encouraged to receive their HPV vaccine, something which is now administered within schools and works to reduce the risk of cervical cancer. Young boys are also encouraged to take this vaccine, helping to prevent further cancers.

On September 6, Caron was pleased to say that her consultant found no further evidence of cancer in her cells, and she is now working on regaining her strength to help others.

She is the owner of The Mindful Bunny, a company which work to provide physical and mental wellbeing tools for the community.

With an immense passion for fitness, Caron is beyond eager to return to work and had already set out her plans for her comeback.

“I’ve signed up for a restorative yoga course and I’ve put my name down for a counselling course that starts in January.

“I find that in my job people often want to speak to you and I think that if you’ve experienced things yourself then it helps you to know more and then help others.

“I try to take the positive from the negative and something like a cancer diagnosis really makes you evaluate your life,” she says.

Struggling through the pandemic herself, Caron is now committed to helping as many people as possible as life returns to some normality.

You can find out more about Cervical Cancer Awareness Month here. 

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