Woman with cancer given three months to live now in remission

Caroline Guy was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer

A woman who was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer and given three months to live has been told she is in remission.

Caroline Guy, 56, was diagnosed in January 2020, after her cancer spread to her ovaries and liver.

After extensive surgery at the Queen's Medical Centre six weeks ago, she was told her test results were clear.

The Nottingham hospital said it was pleased Ms Guy was now in remission following her diagnosis.

Ms Guy was visiting her husband Adam in Saudi Arabia in January 2020 when she became seriously ill.

"I was in pain walking, I looked seven months pregnant, and I woke up one night and was violently sick. I just felt horrendous," she said.

She was rushed to hospital, where a surgeon informed her family that she had three to four months to live.

She started a course of chemotherapy and, in September, travelled back to Nottingham to see her daughter.

'A miracle'

After further chemotherapy in the city, scans revealed the tumour had shrunk to a stage where she could have surgery.

Surgeons in Nottingham removed part of her bowel, and performed a full hysterectomy.

When she returned to the hospital for her test results, they were clear.

"The surgeon looked at me and said you've got no cancer. I said 'are you sure?'

"I just couldn't believe it. It's a miracle," she said.

"It cost £110,000 for my treatment in Saudi - my husband's retirement fund - because I didn't have insurance.

"The money it cost for private care - even though it was amazing - it doesn't touch what I've had done here with the NHS, and the NHS gets such a bashing."

Ms Guy will be in remission for five years and will be monitored.

Her surgeon Alastair Simpson said: "Caroline had extensive chemotherapy and surgical resection of multiple organs, which is physically demanding but also presents a significant psychological burden and carries the potential for serious complications.

"Nottingham has an advanced cancer service which is able to coordinate this care and support her through the process.

"It has been a pleasure to be part of the team to manage her from a life-threatening cancer diagnosis into her current state of remission and surveillance."