A woman who was told by her GP to consume less alcohol and coffee to ease her anxiety actually had cancer. Anglee Kumar went to A&E after she started to feel constantly lethargic and began to get heart palpitations in addition to a tightness in her chest but was initially diagnosed with inflammation in her chest.
The 26-year-old, who had always had a healthy lifestyle, visited her GP when things didn’t get better. However, the aspiring lawyer, who had just secured a job with one of London’s top law firms, was told that she could be suffering with anxiety due to her long working hours and was advised to cut back on alcohol and coffee.
When that didn’t improve her symptoms, her GP suggested it could be coeliac disease. When Anglee sought a second opinion at a private clinic, she was told there was nothing seriously wrong with her, according to Mirror Online.
She underwent a number of blood tests, breathing tests, an ultrasound and a seven-day electrocardiogram (ECG) over the next few months but all her results came back normal. It wasn’t until Anglee insisted on having a CT scan - despite doctors’ reluctance given her young age - that it was finally determined that she had Non-Hodgkin lymphoma, which is a cancer that starts in white blood cells called lymphocytes.
In the UK, more than 13,000 people are diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma each year, according to the NHS. Just over a third of cases diagnosed are in people aged over 75 and the most common symptom is a painless swelling in a lymph node, usually in the neck, armpit or groin - none of which applied to Anglee.
She started chemotherapy in November last year and, because of the potential damage to her ovaries, froze her eggs. The Londoner lost her hair, eyebrows, eyelashes and 10kg in weight as a result of the treatment.
She told MyLondon: “That time was awful. I stopped looking in the mirror because I just looked so scary. You look sick, your family looks at you a different way even though they don’t mean to.
“It’s just a constant reminder of how sick you are. I lost all my confidence. I didn’t really leave my bed.
“And it sounds silly but in Asian cultures, if you’re a girl, and if you’re sick, then everyone hides it because it’s seen as a reason you wouldn’t be able to get married. I’m sure there’s a lot of Asian girls that have to hide stuff, but I’m now trying to break the stigma.
“But at the time I had to find a really realistic wig, which was expensive. No one knew I was bald underneath at family events.
“I remember three days after my diagnosis I was at my cousin’s wedding thinking ‘Oh my God. Like I’m here. I’m dancing, but my world has come crashing down’.”
Luckily, as her cancer journey progressed, so did her outlook on how she was going to bounce back. Anglee applied to the Miss Universe competition in January 2022, forcing her to tell her family what she had been through.
She wanted to use the platform to inspire other women to find their confidence, in the face of adversity. Anglee came second in the competition and was the first cancer patient to take part.
Now an ambassador for cancer charity Macmillan, she has also now secured a law training contract at a top London law firm. Having completed chemotherapy, Anglee has been told that she has the all clear and her cancer is in remission.
She added: “I’ve endured the most difficult six months of my life, and this has not been easy to share so publicly, but I hope it can help inspire other women. I’m just trying to encourage women everywhere to just stand up for themselves - whether that be for their health or in the workplace.
“So that’s my goal now and all of the stuff I’m doing now, I’m trying to be a voice for change.”
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