A Napier University student nurse who was given the devastating news that a lump on her lymph nodes was stage four cancer has spoken of her joy at being told he is now in remission.
Alix Maitland, 20, was in her second year at the Edinburgh university and had been working hard on 12-hour shifts on the wards when she noticed something was amiss with her neck.
But she was brushed off by her GP who told her that the pain she was feeling was probably just a muscle strain.
READ MORE: Edinburgh student nurse’s pea-sized lump on neck turned out to be blood cancer
Alix spoke to Edinburgh Live in December 2022 after she sadly had to take a leave of absence after a small lump on the side of her neck turned out to be Hodgkin Lymphoma.
The cancer had spread not just to her neck but also to her chest, bones, and spleen, forcing her to undertake gruelling chemotherapy immediately.
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She says that as a child she would often get swollen glands in the side of her neck and that they would swell under certain weather conditions so she thought nothing of it.
But after finding a pea-sized node in a different area of her neck she went to go get it checked up – it was only through her high anxiety levels that doctors pursued further tests that uncovered the stage four cancer.
Alix says that she was very pessimistic about the diagnosis and that her mental state waned but she was able to rally herself to pursue chemotherapy and fight the cancer.
But after undertaking two different forms of chemotherapy earlier this year, the courageous young student from Paisley was given the unbelievable news that she was in remission and could start making future plans.
“I started chemo on December 5 2022 and was due to get four rounds of it but when I got my first PET scan in February they realised that the cancer was not responding the way they wanted it to”, she said.
“So they decided that I would change to a stronger course of chemo but after every treatment I was finding myself contracting sepsis which just meant that I had an extra week of recovery to deal with.
“I joked that they had to go for something stronger as it is always the difficult route with me.
“I was told that I was in remission on April 21 and went for my last treatment of chemo on Wednesday May 3.
“It was unbelievable news and it felt so good because I am quite a pessimistic person.
“I went into the second round of chemo without much hope as my results from the first scan were not great.
“It is safe to say I cried when they told me. Right now I am still having to do jags to boost my white cells and they are going to monitor me to make sure I don’t need a blood transfusion.
“Everyone was so happy when we got the news. My mum was sobbing in the corner of the hospital room and everyone was buzzing for me.”
Alix says that she plans on returning to university but that she is looking to take another year out rather than opting to return this September.
She adds that she has plans in the making and a few things that she wants to tick off before returning to her studies.
“I’ll take a year for myself as I have some things that I want to do”, she continued.
“I was meant to go to New York at Christmas but didn’t manage it as I was diagnosed in November, so I’m planning that for my 21st in October.
“I’ve then got a few concerts in London in December if things are going well which is something to look forward to.”
Alix said that she would advise anyone who receives a devastating diagnosis to keep putting one foot in front of the other and to continue to fight.
“I was properly morbid when I was first diagnosed, my mum was terrified but when I came to terms with the diagnosis I got my head down and decided to get on with it”, she said.
“If someone ends up in the same boat I’d say that you can still live your life.
“You are not your diagnosis. I’ve still seen my friends and even surprised my pals in Nottingham, you can still live your life but you just have to be more cautious.
“A common misconception is that the minute you have cancer you are a write off and I thought that but then I realised it is another part of your day and I got on with it.
“I would reiterate to check your body and if you think there is a change then listen to it – if doctors say no then push your case.
“My GP was palming me off saying it was muscle strain but to come to the conclusion it was stage four cancer I felt it was a big mistake to make.
“The majority of my cancer was in my neck and the scans showed my windpipe was being pushed to the opposite side of my neck.
“If I’d have left it longer, they said I’d have shown up unable to breath as an emergency case – if the doctors didn’t pick it up when they did it could have been worse.
“So I say always push to see somebody.
“The looks I got off older people was difficult as they think young people aren’t meant to be sick and another common misconception is that young people don’t get cancer, this is not true.
“I’d like to thank Beatson hospital who could not have been any better, from the people who give you cups of tea, to those giving you your diagnosis, I never met one person I would not praise, they were amazing.”
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