Claire's Bowel Cancer Story
“Listen to your body and advocate for your health because you’re the only one who can. If you feel something’s not right just be sure that you’re checked, no matter how big or small it is, make sure you get an answer.”
“Listen to your body and advocate for your health because you’re the only one who can. If you feel something’s not right just be sure that you’re checked, no matter how big or small it is, make sure you get an answer.”
Then aged 32, Claire Fagan, from Balbriggan, Co. Dublin, was in the middle of planning her wedding to take place the following year, when she had bad stomach pain and had her appendix out in August 2024. “We originally thought it was a burst appendix, but it turned out to be a burst ovarian cyst. Following my procedure, my recovery was slow. I lost a lot of weight, and I felt like something was in still in my stomach.”
Claire, who works as a medical secretary, was told she would recover and return to work following the surgery, but she didn’t feel well enough to work. “I went back to my GP with my symptoms around three months later in November, and I was referred for a CT scan. The CT scan results showed signs that I’d needed a colonoscopy, which unfortunately found a tumour. A biopsy confirmed it was cancer and it all just spiralled from there.”
Her doctors initially thought the cancer was lymphoma, with her symptoms and presentation. They tested the tumour after the surgery, and Claire was diagnosed with Stage 4 bowel cancer that spread to her lymph nodes.
Claire’s mam was with her when she was diagnosed. She remembers the moment that she heard the news: “It was like the rug got pulled up from under me. I knew from the colonoscopy that something was wrong, the vibe of the room just wasn’t right.”
“When the doctor told me they found cancer, I stopped breathing for a second. The first thought that came to my head was I’m getting married in October, I don’t have time to have cancer. I can’t be a bald bride! I think I was in shock.”
“I was really overwhelmed for the first few hours. It’s not the news you think you’re going to hear. I look after myself, I’m relatively healthy. But my life’s changed forever and I’m not the same person anymore. I was also worried for everybody else. I asked myself: ‘Is this real?’”
Claire called the Irish Cancer Society Support Line when she was initially diagnosed, just to see where she stood with her cancer. “At the time I wasn’t ready to speak with anybody for counselling, but they put me in touch with my local cancer support centre. If it wasn’t for the Irish Cancer Society, I’d be lost. It’s such a support.”
“My doctors suggested that my cancer was likely growing for two years before they found it. It’s absolutely terrifying that something was in your body and it doesn’t show up for two years. Apart from that stomach pain and my appendix removal, I never suffered with anything scary that my body didn’t tell me until I had an operation for something that I thought was completely different.”
“For my treatment, I underwent immunotherapy every four weeks. They took a scan every 12 weeks to monitor the effectiveness of the treatment. Unfortunately, scans showed that immunotherapy wasn’t working. My medical team at Our Lady of Lordes Hospital in Drogheda outlined three options: to continue immunotherapy and see if it worked, try chemotherapy, or start a clinical trial at a different hospital.”
Claire is now on a clinical trial at the Start Clinic at the Mater Hospital, which involves an oral tablet which is taken once a day and monitored with blood tests and ECGs and scans every eight weeks. The treatment will last for an undetermined amount of time. “It’s a bit weird not knowing when or if it’s going to end,” Claire says.
She adds that it’s also challenging as she and her partner would like to start a family, but they didn’t have the opportunity to undergo any fertility treatment. She doesn’t know if she will be able to have the experience of becoming a parent.
“With cancer you can be surrounded by other people, and so much love and support, but I feel like it’s the loneliest thing in the world. People can only understand to an extent what you’re going through. Sometimes, I’d like if people around me could let me just be sad and be in my feelings for the day.”
Claire is sharing her story to encourage people to act on any persist health issues.
“Listen to your body. I want to raise more awareness for younger people to not ignore your body or things that aren’t right. Don’t let anything go, whether it be bloods or a routine appointment, because there could be something in that that’s not right.
Claire pushed back her wedding by a year and will get married in October 2026. She wants to be able to enjoy the day with her family and friends.
“A positive outlook can really get you over the hump. There are days where you’re going to feel as low as low can be, but if you just focus on that one bright thing, whether it’s a nice text or a sunny day, it’s focusing on the little wins and the brightness.”
