Renee Gosney was 25 years old when she began experiencing “strange” symptoms that she couldn’t explain.
It was February 2019 when the stomach pain began. Then came the vomiting, daily bloody nose, and uncomfortable bloating.
Doctors had ruled her out time and time again, but after losing 11kg in a month, she returned to the GP every two weeks to plead her case.
Ultrasounds revealed that “nothing was wrong.” Experts insisted she was fine.
It would be months before Renee discovered she had “rapidly growing” stage three bowel cancer.
Speaking to FEMAIL, the now 31-year-old business owner said the pain was like nothing she had ever experienced before.
‘I felt like I had a blockage in my stomach and the pain was getting worse and worse. “If you stood next to me, you could hear everything that was going on in my stomach,” he recalled.
‘Every time I went back to the GP I got more pain relief which worked for a few days until my symptoms got worse.
Renee Gosney was 25 years old when she began experiencing “strange” symptoms that she couldn’t fully explain.
It was February 2019 when the stomach pain began. Then came the vomiting, daily bloody nose, and uncomfortable bloating.
“I didn’t know it at the time, but I had a tumor that was growing rapidly.”
Renee described the pain as a “cramping” sensation followed by a loud “gurgling” sound.
“It was very clear to everyone around me that I was not feeling well, although I tried to overcome the discomfort,” he said.
‘I would still go to my retail job because I didn’t want to look weak. I would be in the middle of a task and then just hunch over for a few minutes and deal with the pain until it passed.
“Regular customers would come up to me and tell me I looked wrong.”
Her colleagues urged her to go back to the doctor because “something was clearly very wrong.”
“I was trying to be tough about it, but in hindsight, I should have taken the time off.” “I was worried about losing my job or sick days, making it look like I couldn’t do the job properly and affecting my reliability,” he said.
On April 1, 2019, Renee couldn’t take it anymore.
He arrived at the emergency room when the pain became disabling and his face began to lose color. He took all his medical documents to the hospital and explained his complicated history.
Renee went to the emergency room when the pain became disabling and her face began to lose color.
Renee described the pain as “cramping” in her stomach followed by a “gurgling” sound.
“I had an x-ray which showed a mass that the doctors couldn’t identify; only after a CT scan the next morning did they find a stage 3 T4 cancerous tumor inside my intestine,” he said.
Renee was in so much pain she could barely process the news.
“My parents were absolutely devastated,” he recalled.
“They were crying their eyes out and I was trying to console them and look on the positive side. We finally knew what was wrong and how to treat it.
‘The doctors said they were going to go blind because they didn’t have time to do many screening tests. My intestine was about to burst; They had to go in and remove the tumor as soon as possible.
‘I said goodbye to my dad in pre-op and it was the first time I realized that he could die on the table. A split second later I was sedated and taken to the operating room.
Fortunately, Renee’s surgery was successful and doctors removed a third of her intestine along with some of her lymph nodes.
‘My hands and feet became very dry (pictured) and I struggled with nausea and vomiting. “I felt really bad the whole time,” she said of the chemotherapy.
Renee relied on the support of her loved ones during her shock diagnosis and treatment.
Tests found cancer cells in the surrounding area, which led to three months of chemotherapy.
‘My hands and feet became very dry and I had to fight nausea and vomiting. “I felt very bad the whole time,” he said.
After a series of additional tests, Renee discovered that her cancer was caused by a genetic condition she didn’t know she had.
“I have juvenile polyposis, which is a rare disease that increases the risk of developing gastrointestinal cancers,” he explained. ‘I had polyps in my colon that became cancerous.
“My doctor asked me if I had a history of fatal bowel cancer in my family and I still couldn’t associate myself and my illness as cancer because I was only 25 years old.
‘However, I think cancer was a blessing in disguise. I’ve had nosebleeds almost every day of my life and I had no idea what was wrong until I was diagnosed with this.’
After a series of additional tests, Renee discovered that her cancer was caused by a genetic condition she didn’t know she had.
She said she was angry at how easily her GP dismissed her symptoms.
“He said it was nothing and that I had a cancerous tumor growing inside me,” she said.
‘I am now a much better advocate for myself when it comes to issues with my body. It is important not to shy away from asking questions.
“Cancer doesn’t discriminate in terms of age, something we don’t hear enough about.”
Renee shared that she leaned on her loved ones for support during that time.
“I had my father, my stepmother, my friends and my partner with me; I’m grateful to not be alone,” she said.
‘I knew that being negative about the situation would bring about a worse outcome because I would be less likely to eat and look after myself.
“Instead, I just focused on doing the best I could because you really have no choice, you just have to go through it.”
Renee urged Australians to always seek a second opinion and advocate for themselves.
Renee said she was grateful that people helped her during her cancer diagnosis and treatment.
Renee struggled to “get back to normal” after her treatment.
“No one knows how to treat you and it makes you feel like something is wrong with you,” she said.
She recalled feeling “fragile” and “weird.”
“Everyone tried to protect me and help me at every possible moment, which was very kind, but I wanted things to go back to normal.
‘Other people have this reaction of stepping back when you tell them you have cancer, almost as if it were contagious. It makes you feel even more isolated.”
Renee returns to her doctor for checkups every year and regularly has colon polyps removed.
Now he reminds everyone how important it is to get a second opinion and defend yourself if something is wrong.
“You shouldn’t have to get to a point where you’re in excruciating pain to have things checked out,” he said.
“Be aware of your family history and never think that your age will limit your chances of getting cancer.”