I thought struggling to pee was down to a UTI – it was cancer & I had to have my vagina reconstructed with my bum cheek

A YOUNG pistillate who thought thing of her urinary tract corruption (UTI) was later told she successful information had crab and thought she mightiness die.

Katie Arding, 29, had conscionable settled down connected the Gold Coast, Australia, with her boyfriend, Rhys Lord, 31, erstwhile she abruptly recovered herself unable to pee.

The hairdresser from Reading, Berkshire, had struggled going to the toilet for months but had enactment it down to a urinary tract corruption (UTI).

But aft going to infirmary doctors recovered a 10cm wide connected her pelvis, and pursuing respective weeks of testing, Katie was told had sarcoma - a uncommon insubstantial cancer.

"I had my anus and rectum removed and my uterus, cervix, some fallopian tubes, and 1 ovary," Katie said.

"I had a reconstruction of my vaginal wall.

"They utilized portion of my bum feature to enactment wrong maine to make that partition again."

Katie near to spell travelling astir South East Asia with Rhys, who works successful web infrastructure, successful September 2022.

For the 4 months they were travelling she noticed she would sometimes conflict to urinate but presumed it was a UTI.

She said: "I'd person to truly absorption and unbend to wee.

"If I sat down excessively rapidly I felt a spot of unit - similar thing was swollen inside."

In February 2023 and were connected a travel to Noosa, Australia for Rhys' day erstwhile Katie had to beryllium rushed to hospital.

She said: "We'd been retired connected the vessel for the day.

"Everything was good and that's abruptly erstwhile I wasn't capable to spell for a wee.

"I was bowled implicit successful pain."

Katie visited the section infirmary and had implicit 2L of urine drained from her bladder.

Doctors told her if she had near it immoderate longer she would person gone into kidney failure.

She said: "My bladder was truthful enlarged. My belly looked similar I was pregnant."

A CT scan revealed a wide connected her pelvis but they were unsure precisely what it was.

Katie returned to the Gold Coast and spent 2 weeks successful infirmary getting CT scans, MRIs, X-rays and ultrasounds earlier they told her they thought it could beryllium cancer.

A biopsy successful September 2023 confirmed she had an assertive lawsuit of high-grade pleomorphic spindle compartment sarcoma.

Katie said: "I benignant of collapsed.

"My full assemblage conscionable switched off. It was specified a shock.

"The information it was truly assertive topped it off."

12-hour cognition

Katie chose to travel location for her attraction and was sent to the Royal Marsden Hospital, Chelsea.

She said: "They called maine successful to person a meeting.

"They said they deliberation portion of the tumour is connected my bony and they would lone beryllium capable to dainty maine with palliative care.

"I thought I didn't person overmuch clip left."

Katie had six rounds of chemotherapy earlier doctors could bash a bony biopsy.

Luckily it was benign and she was capable to person a 12-hour cognition called pelvic exenteration successful March 2024 - to region the tumour connected her pelvis and thing that touched it.

In the aforesaid operation, she had her vaginal partition removed and reconstructed with portion of her bum cheek.

Katie was besides fitted with 1 stoma bag and couldn't beryllium down connected her bum for six weeks pursuing the surgery.

She past had an exigency country successful May 2024 aft getting a bowel blockage.

'I consciousness lucky'

Katie has scans each 3 months to cheque if the tumour has grown backmost and has to self-catheterise each time arsenic her bladder was disconnected from her kidney.

She said: "There is simply a precocious accidental it [the cancer] volition travel back.

"I person taken it each successful my stride.

"I'm arrogant of my story.

"I'm not ashamed of my body, oregon of my stoma.

"The country was a blessing - I wouldn't beryllium present without it.

"I consciousness fortunate to person got done it."

Katie is present hoping to commencement a concern to proviso affordable customised wigs and springiness proposal to radical who person gone done hairsbreadth loss.