EMMA Rosić was, as she considered, in normal health.
But as she began balancing work with parenting her son, Frankie, she began to feel a little more tired than usual.
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Emma Rosic ready for CT scan in January Credit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
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Mum with husband Darran and son Frankie in August 2022 before she got sick Credit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
The 32-year-old didn’t think anything was out of the ordinary until she experienced a range of other symptoms – including night sweats, itchy skin, weight loss and swollen lymph nodes in her neck.
While doctors initially believed she was suffering from tonsillitis, Emma continued to struggle with ill health, culminating in her lung collapsing while shopping for gifts for her son.
Finally, after six months of worrying doctors, an X-ray revealed the truth: Emma had a large lump in her chest, which turned out to be lymphoma – a type of blood cancer.
“The diagnosis turned our lives around,” said Emma, from Hampshire.
“Having a little boy and getting news like this is the hardest thing ever.
“As a parent, I was worried about how I would cope with all this and still be a parent to my child – who was only four years old at the time.
“I didn’t know I had cancer for a long time as it grew, until doctors weren’t sure how long I had it before it was discovered.
“They told me it was the second phase.
“At first I didn’t know if it was going to kill me or not.”
The terrifying journey followed increased fatigue when her son was two and Emma was juggling parenthood with her job as an airline pricing executive.
I was diagnosed with bowel cancer after feeling tired all the time
In July 2022, her husband Darran found her passed out in the bathroom, collapsed with a fever.
She was rushed to the hospital, where, she says, they told her she had tonsillitis.
But over the following months, she had continued chest infections and found that the prescribed antibiotics weren’t helping.
Five months after her first visit to the hospital, while shopping for Christmas presents, her condition worsened and she “felt her lungs collapse.”
The findings of an X-ray in early January 2023 finally revealed the sinister cause of Emma’s health problems.
After the brutal discovery, she was fitted with a PICC line and began “intensive” chemotherapy.
Within two weeks, she lost her hair.
Cancer changed my life forever. I will never take life for granted again
Emma
Emma said: “I remember being told I was going to lose my hair, so I took control and cut my hair into a bob, so it wasn’t that hard.
“Cutting my hair into a bob broke my heart and I cried all night.
“It was hard to explain the hair loss to my son because he was so young, but we told him it was cancer leaving my body.
“His reaction was to say, ‘You look like dad,’ because my husband is bald.”
Emma struggled with chemotherapy, experiencing severe jaw pain and fatigue, as well as the prospect of never seeing her son again.
But luckily, the treatment worked and after eight weeks Emma was officially in remission.
In June, she had to ring the bell to signify getting the “all clear.”
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Emma in hospital after being diagnosed with cancer Credit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
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Her hair fell out during treatmentCredit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
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Emma says her symptoms were eerily subtle at firstCredit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
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‘The diagnosis turned our lives around,’ said Emma from Hampshire Credit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
She said: “Ringing the bell is the best feeling in the world.
“Hearing the sound after fighting the hardest battle – that told me it was officially over.”
A final scan was carried out later that month, confirming the positive results.
Emma said: “No one could have imagined the impact this has had on my life.
“Every day I fear that the cancer will return.
“Despite quarterly check-ups, between those months I always worry and I believe that I will worry for the rest of my life.
“I have been in remission for a year, and to many people, a year seems like an eternity – to me, it is not.
“I had to go through counseling as I struggled to come to terms with what happened and my new look.
“I kept saying that I wish I was a girl before all this, but that’s not the case.
“The person before all this had cancer and the new me didn’t – so I learned to love myself again.”
“NEVER WASTE A DAY”
She added: “I still have days when I sit and look back through everything and cry.
“Without my husband Darran, six-year-old son Frankie, my mum and dad and close friends, I wouldn’t have got through this and been where I am today.
“We knew it was going to be a struggle, but we didn’t realize how hard it was until it all started to become more and more real.
“The amount of love and support from friends and family has been absolutely incredible and everyone has helped me through my toughest battle.
“Cancer changed my life forever. I will never take life for granted again.
“I will live every day to the fullest because I will never know what is waiting for me around the corner. I never want to waste a day.”
What are the signs of lymphoma?
LYMPHOMA is the term for cancer that starts in the lymphatic system – the network of blood vessels and glands that runs throughout your body.
There are two main types of lymphoma – Hodgkin’s lymphoma and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Lymphoma can cause many different symptoms, depending on the type of lymphoma and where it develops in the body.
The most typical signs are:
- Swollen lymph nodes, such as in the neck, armpit or groin
- Night sweats
- Extreme fatigue
- itching
- Unexplained weight loss
- Fever
- Excessive bleeding, such as nosebleeds, heavy periods, and spotting of blood under the skin
Other signs of lymphoma in a more localized area include:
- Stomach swelling, loss of appetite and other abdominal symptoms
- Cough, shortness of breath or chest pain
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Emma with little Frankie Credit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
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She began to feel extra tired while balancing work with parenting her little boy Credit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
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July 2022 Darran found Emma unconscious in the bathroom Credit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
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Emma is now officially in remissionCredit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
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But she said: ‘Every day I fear the cancer will come back’ Credit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
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She said the love and support she has received from family and friends has been ‘amazing’Credit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
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Emma found the loss to be one of the hardest parts of her journey Credit: Jam Press/@emmaconqueredcancer
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Source: HIS Education