Listen to Your Body: Woman Dismisses Cancer Aches as COVID Shot Symptoms; Dies Nine Weeks Later

She chalked up her symptoms to prolonged effects of the life-saving COVID shot, but it turned out that Holland had stomach and liver cancer; her condition was terminal. She died nine weeks later.

Holland's story is a sad one. However, it's a story we can all remember when it comes to listening to your body and advocating for your own health care needs.

A 'Healthy and Energetic Woman'

Holland, who was from Atherton in Greater Manchester, United Kingdom, was a "healthy and energetic woman," her son told the Manchester Evening News. She also loved to walk her dogs every day.

She received her COVID vaccine in February and began to experience breathlessness, fatigue, difficulty walking far distances and a deteriorating appetite her complaints struck her loved ones as odd, Ian explained. By May, Holland's problems weren't getting any better, so she decided to seek medical attention.

Three weeks later, on June 10, she was diagnosed with cancer. By July 22, Holland learned that her condition was terminal. While it's not exactly clear where the cancer started in Holland's body, it ended up reaching both her stomach and liver. It's also not clear what stage cancer Holland had at the time of her diagnosis or her death.

The five-year survival rate for stomach cancer at its earliest stage is about 70%, according to the American Cancer Society, but that number diminishes to 6% once it progresses to other parts of the body. (The five-year survival rate means that people who have that cancer are, on average, about 70% as likely as people who don't have that cancer to live for at least five years after their diagnosis.) With liver cancer, the five-year survival rate at its earliest stage is 34% and drops to 3% once it has spread.

Doctors told Holland that her cancer was "very aggressive"; she went to the hospital for a "simple procedure" with an overnight stay, her son explained, adding that she was supposed to go home the next day.

"Mum never came home," he said, " and was put on end-of-life care."

Holland died on Aug. 8.

"Everyone is in total shock at how quickly mum deteriorated a short nine weeks," Ian said. "But we are so proud of her strength and her dignity right to the end. She was a very caring, strong, energetic lady."

It’s important to advocate for yourself and your own health care needs.

'You Know Your Body, Listen To It'

It's unknown why Holland didn't seek medical care sooner; an increasing number of people didn't visit the doctor as the pandemic raged on for fear of contracting COVID.

"One of the things we're concerned about is that patients and people are afraid to leave the house (because of COVID), and a product of this is that people who have serious, life-threatening illnesses are not seeking medical attention in a timely fashion," Dr. Abraham Chachoua, a medical oncologist specializing in lung cancer at NYU Langone Health's Perlmutter Cancer Center, told SurvivorNet last year at the height of the pandemic.

Other times, you just need to listen to your body.

Holland was experiencing symptoms associated with both stomach and liver cancer; she was specifically feeling loss of appetite and fatigue, but there are other symptoms associated with both types of cancers, according to the American Cancer Society. Despite their persistence, she chalked her symptoms up to getting the vaccine.

One six-year cancer survivor, Lisa Mitchell, tells SurvivorNet that listening to your body is so important.

Mitchell was experiencing all the symptoms of ovarian cancer back pain, bloating and irregular bleeding but was regularly brushed off by doctors. She didn't let this stop her from advocating for herself as she was later diagnosed with stage 3C ovarian cancer.

After being told she was “too young” to have ovarian cancer before being diagnosed, survivor Lisa Mitchell has a really important message for other women.

"It's very possible that had I not been persistent with the doctors, and getting someone to listen to me, that I would not be here right now," she said.

She now has some advice for others who are experiencing symptoms or even dealing with a new cancer diagnosis: "Don't be afraid to advocate for yourself. You know your body; listen to it. Follow your intuition."

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