“I was diagnosed with stage four endometrial cancer despite a clear smear – know the signs”

A mum diagnosed with stage four endometrial cancer has revealed the symptoms missed by her smear test which women should be ‘screened’ for. Michelle Hancock, 32, had never heard of endometrial cancer – which usually starts in the lining of the womb and is most common in postmenopausal women.

She experienced heavy bleeding between periods for several weeks – but was still able to lead a normal life, including going on holiday. Mum-of-one Michelle had a clear smear test, so the last thing she expected was a cancer diagnosis.

After six rounds of palliative chemotherapy, hormone treatment and stomach surgery, Michelle was approved against the odds. However, she said she suffered from “scanxiety” when her follow-up scans were coming up.

Now, she said she will be monitored for the next five years – and is encouraging other young women to learn the warning signs. Smear tests are not used to detect endometrial cancer – but the results sometimes show signs of an abnormal endometrium, prompting further tests.

Michelle, from Grimsby, Lincolnshire, said: “It came out of nowhere. I was in shock because it was cancer and I had no idea what type of cancer it was.

“I’ve never heard of it – it’s usually an older woman’s cancer. But it is not found in younger women until the later stages, because they are not looking for it.

“Symptoms are easy to miss because they are post-menopausal bleeding – young women with symptoms should be checked. Everything happened very quickly, at the end of July I received a call saying that it was inoperable and that they would do it. six rounds of palliative chemo to prolong my life.

“(Chemotherapy) has worked really well and I’ve now had two clear scans – but it was never meant to go away in the first place. I’m fine until the scans are done and then the ‘scan anxiety’ sets in – at one point I wouldn’t make plans more than two weeks in advance. It’s affecting more and more young people, but they don’t know about it – none of my friends had heard of it.”

Michelle, a carer, said her symptoms first started in June 2022 after returning from a holiday in Turkey in May. She said she had heavy bleeding between periods for several weeks and became emaciated.

Because she had recently had a clear Pap smear, she said doctors told her it was “probably fibroids,” but they did a blood test and an ultrasound to check. She said after the ultrasound everything changed and she was told she had stage four endometrial cancer which had metastasized to her lungs and lymph nodes in her stomach.

He was given palliative chemotherapy and stomach surgery, which cleared all but one lung of the tumors, and in October 2023 he underwent surgery to remove the lung metastasis as well. Incredibly, in January she had a clear CT and PET scan and was told she was in remission.

“I never knew I’d get a clear scan, so now it’s almost like waiting for a relapse,” Michelle said. “I’m mostly positive now but I feel like I’m waiting for the shoe to drop – in May I was in Turkey going down water slides without realizing there was cancer all over.

“Cramps, shortness of breath, mainly bleeding between periods and any abnormal discharge are all symptoms. Family history of endometrial cancer and family history of bowel cancer may also be a link to this cancer.”

Endometrial cancer is most common in people who have gone through menopause – and the average age of menopause is 51.