A Scots student nurse who was diagnosed with stage four cancer after experiencing no symptoms has told of how her life was turned upside down. Alix Maitland had been working 12-hour shifts as a student nurse during her second year at Edinburgh Napier University, as well as working at a local ice rink.
The 20-year-old felt no different from normal but after finding a pea-sized lump in her neck, she contacted her doctor. Alix initially believed she had swollen lymph nodes, as she has had a swollen gland in the side of her neck since she was a child.
But the young student was shocked when tests revealed the small lump was stage four Hodgkin's Lymphoma, which had spread to her neck, chest, bones, and spleen. She immediately started gruelling chemotherapy sessions and has had to take a leave of absence from university, Edinburgh Live reports.
She said: "On November 23, I went for a PFT - a test showing how well your lungs are functioning - on this day I met with my haemato-oncologist who told me that the cancer was stage 4 and was mostly in my neck, chest, spleen, and bones.
"This came as quite a shock because I felt so well doing things I would normally do, working 12.5 shifts as a student nurse alongside working in an ice rink as well. I couldn’t quite understand why it could be stage 4 as I was 'well'.
"On November 28, I went for my final scan which was an echocardiogram to check that my heart was strong enough to endure the treatment that was about to begin and on December 5 I received my first out of 12 rounds of chemotherapy. Chemo really did knock the life out of me, I was extremely sick despite taking anti-sickness medication and also had many areas of my body aching for days.
"It drains you of almost all your energy so you do spend the majority of the time sleeping. I get chemo every second Monday so the second week has been a lot better I’ve been up and about and have met up with friends which has been good."
Alix said she allowed herself some time to cry as the surreal experience of being faced with death at a devastatingly young age sank in. But the inspiring student is now determined to help others following the terrifying diagnosis and has over £5,000 for the charity.
She said: "It’s pretty difficult adjusting for sure, I’ve cut 15 inches off my hair in the hopes that when I lose my hair it doesn’t shock me as much. I donated the hair to the little princess trust as it was perfectly good hair and can help improve someone else’s confidence in difficult times and I have a JustGiving page raising money for Lymphoma Action."
Alix added: "When you’re diagnosed it doesn’t seem real. It’s definitely been hard and many tears have been shed but at the end of the day, you need to pick yourself up and fight.
"You obviously don’t want to die at any age never mind being so young with my whole life ahead of me, I gave myself time to cry and then my whole mindset changed.
"I am definitely taking each day as it comes but keeping in mind that there is light at the end of a very long tunnel. They do say 'if you don’t laugh you’ll greet' and I honestly believe there is no truer saying."
You can find out more about Alix's story and donate to the fundraising page here. You can also find support for any topics raised in this article here.
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