A Derbyshire mother is urging for childhood ovarian cancer screening after her 14-year-old daughter’s rugby ball-sized tumour was initially misdiagnosed as period pain.
Izzy Pickering, from Sawley, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in April, a diagnosis that revealed a large tumour with a stem in her ovary.
Izzy’s initial symptoms, including back pain, stomach aches, and vomiting, led doctors to suspect appendicitis or period pain when she first visited A&E in November.
However, during a second emergency room visit, her parents, Lisa and Wayne Pickering, insisted on further investigation. These subsequent tests uncovered the stage two cancer.
This case highlights the lack of a national screening programme for ovarian cancer, a disease that accounts for 7,500 new cases annually in the UK. It primarily affects women over 50, according to NHS data.
Following the diagnosis, doctors successfully removed Izzy’s tumour. With the cancer detected relatively early, medical professionals are optimistic that chemotherapy will prove effective in Izzy’s fight against the disease.
Her mother is now advocating for increased awareness and testing for ovarian cancer in children.
“You hear of children with leukaemia but you don’t hear of young girls with ovarian cancer,” Ms Pickering said.
“We want to get the word out that ovarian cancer can affect girls as young as 14 and not to take symptoms for granted.
“Children should have access to screening from when they start their period.
“They should not have to wait until they are sexually active as this is proof you don’t have to be to get cancer in that area.”
Izzy, who loves singing, acting and theatre, started to feel unwell in November when she was struck with a severe stomach ache, back pain and began vomiting.
Her parents took her to her local GP where doctors initially thought it could be appendicitis and she was rushed to A&E at Queen’s Medical Centre hospital in Nottingham for tests that same day.
Doctors thought her pain could be due to her period and she was prescribed antibiotics for a possible infection in her oesophagus.
But weeks later, Izzy’s vomiting continued and she became frightened to eat in case she was sick.
On March 19, her parents took her back to A&E where doctors ruled out appendicitis.
But Ms Pickering refused to leave the hospital without more tests to confirm what was wrong.
“Something wasn’t right, we know our daughter,” she said.
Izzy’s temperature spiked and she was sent for an MRI scan on April 20 which led to her ovarian cancer diagnosis the following day.
Close friend Sarahjane Giles, 45, who has launched a fundraiser to support the family while they take time off to take Izzy for treatment, said: “Doctors found a rugby ball-sized mass in her ovary with a stalk growing in the middle which was causing her back pain.
“It was so big, all her organs had been pushed backwards and it had attached itself to tissue at the bottom of her back.”
On March 17, Izzy underwent surgery to remove the tumour and began bleeding out on the operating table.
Ms Giles, who has been with the family throughout their ordeal, said: “They had to cut her in so many ways as the stalk had attached itself to so many things.
“They had to pack her stomach, leave her open, and put her in ICU to stop the bleeding.”
Izzy was given blood transfusions overnight and was well enough to return to the operating theatre the next day where doctors removed what they believed was all the cancer.
She was put in an induced coma for five days because “one small movement and her stitches would have ruptured”, Sarahjane said.
In mid-April, doctors slowly took Izzy off her sedation medication and she began eating small amounts of food and taking her first steps.
A biopsy showed she had stage two cancer and would need three months of chemotherapy five days a week to remove what was left of the disease.
“She will lose her hair and doctors said she will struggle to have children in the future,” Sarahjane said.
“It’s a lot for a 14-year-old child to take on.
“What makes it really sad is that Izzy is a miracle baby herself and has always wanted to be a maternity nurse.
“But she has a lovely group of friends who have been going to visit her and her parents have been there every step of the way.”
Izzy is taking time off school during her three-month treatment which started on April 25.
Her parents are having to take unpaid leave from work to take Izzy to hospital and support her during her recovery.
To support the family during this time, Ms Giles has launched a fundraiser on GoFundMe which has so far raised £8,345 of a £10,500 target.
She is also running the half-marathon in Carsington Water, Derbyshire, on June 21 for the same cause and to raise awareness of ovarian cancer.
Any funds raised will also go towards wigs for Izzy and other things she may need.
Ms Giles added: “Izzy is really bubbly, outgoing and the kindest and most caring young lady.
“She loves makeup, handbags, singing and is in a drama group.
“Lis and Izzy will often go to the West End to see shows and were supposed to be going on a family holiday to Turkey before her diagnosis.
“Any donations to help them through this difficult time will make all the difference.”
A spokesperson for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence said that, according to its data, “current evidence does not support population screening for ovarian cancer, even in adults, as there is insufficient evidence that screening reduces mortality and may lead to unnecessary interventions”.
A spokesperson for Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham said the hospital did not comment on individual cases.
A link to Izzy’s fundraiser can be found here: www.gofundme.com/f/please-help-izzy-beat-conquer-ovarian-cancer.
