More than 3000 Kiwis are diagnosed with bowel cancer each year, but what you might not know is that over 350 of those are under the age of 50 , according to Bowel Cancer New Zealand. Ahead of Bowel Cancer Awareness Month in June, South Island-based mum Nicola Petrie shares the story of her own diagnosis at just 42 years old. When Nicola Petrie first began experiencing mild anaemia symptoms, her first thought was “I’ve got to get myself right so I can give blood again”.
A month later the mother of three was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer, underwent major surgery, and is now facing a huge cost for treatment that could give her more time with her young family but isn’t funded in New Zealand. Nicola and her husband Andrew describe themselves as a “Dunedin born and bred” couple who love serving their local community: Nicola works at the local council, while Andrew works for the Otago Cricket Association. They’re parents to three daughters, Renée, 12, Zoë, 8, and Greer, 4, with their youngest set to start school in October.
But the couple say their world “just stopped” when a 13-hour wait in A&E resulted in Nicola being diagnosed with an aggressive form of bowel cancer on April 22 this year. “A month ago I was feeling quite tired and what I thought was slight anaemia - not enough for the doctor to be concerned, but not enough to be able to give blood,” Nicola tells the Herald . She was worried she had a bowel obstruction, but her doctor thought she ha.
