Woman Battles Rare Blood Cancer After Mistaking it for Tonsillitis

Georgina Masson, 24, dismissed her swallowing problems as an infection after having tonsillitis several times before, but she still struggled to swallow and could barely open her mouth after a course of antibiotics.

She was taken to East Surrey Hospital in London, where doctors performed tests to determine what was wrong with her. After spending a week in the hospital, Masson was diagnosed with rare blood cancer, acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

Masson, who lost her father, Paul, 54, to cancer when she was 15, was taken aback by the news and immediately began treatment for her new diagnosis. She is nearing the end of her eight chemotherapy cycles and is grateful for the early detection of the rare blood cancer.

(Photo : Photo: Prof Osaro Erhabor / Wikimedia Commons)
Acute Myeloid Leukemia under a microscope.

Masson, who worked as an admin worker and is from Horsham, West Sussex, recalled how she felt so numb when the doctors told her she had cancer.

Masson said that she just thought that she had tonsillitis and had no idea that it was so much more serious than that.

Despite her fears, she made it a point to begin treatment right away. Masson's father died of cancer when she was 15 years old. She had not anticipated getting cancer at the age of 24.

Ignored Symptoms

Georgina began to notice that she had lost weight in July, but she didn't think much of it because she was happy to shed some pounds for the summer.

Masson had lost 42 pounds at the time, but it didn't seem alarming. She later discovered that her gums bled easily and that she bruised easily.

She had never had nose bleeds before, but they began to occur more frequently. Masson assumed her bruises were the result of her clumsiness.

In July 2021, she was diagnosed with tonsillitis and prescribed antibiotics to treat the infection. On the other hand, Masson was still unable to swallow and could barely open her mouth after a few weeks. She believed the medications were ineffective.

Read also: Highly Contagious Blood Cancer Detected in Clams Threaten Marine Ecology 

AML Diagnosis

Masson was admitted to the East Surrey Hospital by her doctor, who conducted additional tests to determine what the problem was.

Mason recalls having rashes all over her body. The doctors assumed it was a reaction to the antibiotics and took her off the antibiotics. However, the rash stayed.

In August 2021, doctors were able to diagnose her with acute myeloid leukemia after a bone marrow biopsy.

For her treatment, Masson was referred to the Royal Marsden Hospital in Sutton, Surrey. Masson was initially told that she had the AML strain, which is not as uncommon, and that she could go home and begin chemotherapy in a week.

However, on her way home, the hospital called to say that they had looked into it further and that treatment would begin that night.

Masson began her treatment in August 2021 and has now completed seven cycles. Masson admits that the treatment was difficult and that the possibility of death was never far from her mind, Newsweek reports.

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