Woman, 47, Diagnosed With Stage 4 Cancer Issues Urgent Warning About Subtle Symptom She Dismissed
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For Susan Schmidt, a 45-year-old mother and practicing physiotherapist, the initial exhaustion felt like a familiar symptom of a busy life. It was the kind of bone-deep tiredness she, like many women, had learned to push through—a consequence of juggling a career and family. She dismissed it as burnout or perhaps the onset of menopause. It was, she thought, just life catching up. Yet, this persistent fatigue was the first subtle signal of a disturbing trend. Colorectal cancer, long considered a disease of older men, is seeing a sharp increase in younger adults. According to the American Cancer Society, diagnoses in individuals under 50 have nearly doubled since the 1990s. The symptoms are often not the dramatic, textbook signs one might expect. For Susan, there was no sudden weight loss or blood in her stool. There was only the unrelenting tiredness, a bout of constipation she attributed to travel, and two nights of pain she would later describe as “worse than childbirth.” Months later, she received the diagnosis that had been quietly advancing: Stage 4 bowel cancer. Her story is a powerful illustration of a public health concern and a vital call to action for paying attention when your body signals that something is wrong.The Symptom That Didn’t Seem Serious
When ‘Normal’ Symptoms Mask Something Serious
The Reality of a Stage 4 Diagnosis
The news came in September 2023. Waking from a colonoscopy, Susan Schmidt was met not with reassurance, but with the silence of serious concern. Doctors hadn’t been able to complete the procedure; a tumor in her rectum was too large for the scope to pass. Scans soon confirmed the diagnosis: stage 4 bowel cancer that had metastasized to her uterus, pelvic lymph nodes, and lungs. A stage 4 diagnosis means the cancer has spread to distant organs. The focus of treatment shifts from a cure to control, with a five-year relative survival rate of approximately 15%, according to the American Cancer Society. For Susan, this meant immediate, intensive chemotherapy—12 grueling rounds over six months. In March 2024, she underwent a massive surgery, including a bowel resection and a full hysterectomy, to remove all visible tumors. The initial report of clear margins offered a glimmer of hope, but it was quickly extinguished. Follow-up scans revealed dozens of new, small tumors in her lungs.
This setback was followed by a series of devastating challenges: a second chemotherapy drug failed, and a subsequent trial of immunotherapy was halted when it triggered autoimmune hepatitis, a severe liver reaction. The physical toll of the disease and its treatment has been immense. Peripheral neuropathy, a common side effect of chemotherapy, affects the nerves in her hands and feet, making her work as a physiotherapist difficult. Yet through the constant uncertainty, she holds onto hope for the future. “I believe the answer to cancer is out there,” she says. “I just have to stay well long enough to get there.” The diagnosis also forced a painful conversation with her two children, then 13 and 11. Susan and her husband shared the difficult truth of her prognosis. “They know the life expectancy,” she said, adding with pride, “and they’re handling it beautifully.” Her experience is a stark portrait of life with advanced cancer—a daily navigation of treatment, side effects, and the emotional weight of a life irrevocably changed.
The Silent Rise of Early-Onset Bowel Cancer
Breaking the Silence Around Bowel Health
Looking back, Susan Schmidt identifies a crucial factor that contributed to her delayed diagnosis: silence. “I didn’t talk about my bowel habits,” she admitted. “Who does?” This cultural reluctance to discuss digestive health, she now realizes, can be a deadly barrier to early detection. Embarrassment and stigma often prevent people, especially women, from reporting symptoms like persistent bloating, constipation, or changes in bowel movements. When these issues are mentioned, they are frequently normalized or misattributed to less serious causes. Even with her background as a physiotherapist, Susan didn’t connect her symptoms to cancer until she was in crisis. Determined to change this, Susan became a vocal advocate, founding The Floozie Foundation to support patients and promote open conversation about bowel cancer. Her core message is one of empowerment and persistence. “Don’t settle for reassurance,” she urges. “Push for answers. Even if your blood tests are normal, even if your doctor says it’s stress or menopause—trust your instincts.” Her journey also underscores the profound power of community. During her treatment, Susan’s friends and family rallied around her, forming a support group they lovingly called “Sooz’s Floozies.” They offered emotional and practical support, famously cheering her on the route to the hospital for her final chemotherapy session. This network, Susan says, was as crucial as any medical treatment. “Supporting me has helped them too. That’s why community matters.”
Don’t Wait. Speak Up
Susan Schmidt’s story is not just a cautionary tale it’s a wake-up call. Her journey It all started with a tiredness so deep it felt like it was in her bones. For Susan Schmidt, a 45-year-old physiotherapist and mom, it was easy to write off the exhaustion and a random bout of constipation as just… life. We’ve all done it. You blame stress, your diet, your age—anything but the unthinkable. She didn’t have any of the dramatic, textbook symptoms, so even when she sought help, her initial tests came back clean. But underneath those quiet, everyday complaints was a terrifying reality: Stage 4 bowel cancer, and it had already been spreading for a long time. The scary part is, Susan’s story isn’t some rare, one-off tragedy. It’s a real-life example of a trend that doctors are seeing more and more. Bowel cancer is showing up in younger people, especially those under 50, at a shocking rate. And because no one expects it in younger, otherwise healthy people, the subtle signs are often ignored until the cancer has progressed. It’s a dangerous blind spot in our healthcare system, and it means people are getting diagnosed late, when the fight is so much harder. So, what are we supposed to take away from all this? If there’s one lesson to be learned from Susan’s journey, it’s that you have to be your own biggest advocate. It’s about learning to trust that little voice that says something isn’t right here, even if the world is telling you not to worry. It means getting past the awkwardness of talking about our bodies and having the courage to push for answers. In the end, doctors have the medical charts and the test results, but you are the only one who truly knows your own body. Listening to it might just save your life. Featured Image Source: Susan Schmidt on Instagram
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