WHEN Chrissy Cruickshanks lay in her hospital bed fighting cancer, it wasn’t how she imagined her Valentine’s Day to be.
But her mum decorated the ward with hearts, and she was expecting a visit from her boyfriend to celebrate.
Chrissy Cruickshanks was dumped on Valentine’s Day while going through cancer treatment[/caption]
Her boyfriend of 10 years came to visit her in hospital, then ended their relationship over text later that evening[/caption]
However, after arriving to see her, he sent her a text later that evening to break up with her.
Not only was Chrissy fighting for her life, she had a broken heart too.
But now she has put all that behind her – and has not only beaten cancer, but has a miracle baby son too.
Chrissy, 27, from Bristol, said: “It wasn’t how I imagined I’d ever be spending a Valentines’s Day.
“My mum had made it special for me, and had decorated my hospital bed with tiny heart lights, and put hearts on the wall.
“She knew that I still wanted to celebrate the day even though I was battling cancer.”
Chrissy had been diagnosed with a cancerous tumour in her left shoulder blade eight months earlier, in July 2019.
“I had been so busy finishing off my art therapy degree at Derby University, and felt unwell, but I’d put it down to stress,” she said.
“I’d had a terrible pain in my left shoulder blade for several months and I kept going back to the doctors and even A&E, but each time they examined me and said because I’d had no impact injury, it was nothing and sent me home.
“Sometimes the pain was so severe I couldn’t sleep and it would make me dizzy.
“Eventually at Easter that year, the pain got so bad that I went back to A&E and they gave me an X-ray.
“There were several fractures there and they put me in a sling for support and sent me home.”
Weeks later, a fortnight after her graduation ceremony, Chrissy got a call from the hospital out of the blue with some devastating news.
Another doctor had happened to look again at her X-ray and spotted a tumour in her shoulder blade.
Chrissy, who is supported by the Ben Saunders Foundation, said: “I couldn’t believe it.
“It seemed surreal – that they were telling me now, all these weeks later, that I actually had a tumour in my shoulder.
“It was Ewing sarcoma. I couldn’t stop crying.”
I was so upset. The romantic evening I’d planned for us was ruined
Chrissy Cruickshanks
Ewing sarcoma is a type of bone cancer, most often found in teenagers and young adults.
Symptoms can be vague, but commonly include swelling and pain in the affected area.
Chrissy had to start chemotherapy straight away and a month later, she had to battle a blood clot on her lungs.
She was still having treatment when Valentine’s Day came around.
“I was attached to the chemotherapy pump, but I was still excited to see my boyfriend of 10 years,” she said.
“We’d been together since I was 13, and he would come and see me at the weekends.
“I’d planned for us to have a takeaway in my hospital room, and watch a film together.
“I was exhausted, and I had ulcers in my mouth and no hair, but for a few hours, I wanted to celebrate February 14 together, just like any other couple.
“He came in to see me. But he said he wasn’t going to stay and watch the film as he had a cough, so he left.
Chrissy had lost her hair and had sores on her face from her chemotherapy[/caption]
She was diagnosed with bone cancer after pain and a lump in her shoulder[/caption]
“I was so upset. The romantic evening I’d planned for us was ruined.
“A little while later my phone pinged with a text. It was from him to say he was leaving me.
“He told me he didn’t find me attractive anymore. It was devastating to hear.
“I didn’t have any hair or eyebrows, and there were sores over my face from the chemotherapy.
“On top of going through cancer, I’d had my heart broken on the most romantic day of the year. It was a lot to cope with.
“I had to try to concentrate on getting better, and slowly I pulled through it.”
‘Miracle’ son
Chrissy was eventually declared cancer-free, and she could start getting her life back together.
“I had a few relationships after that, and more than anything I wanted to be a mum,” she said.
“But I knew there wasn’t going to be a chance of that.
“I hadn’t been able to freeze my eggs because my cancer had been too aggressive and I had needed to start treatment straight away.
“However, doctors said that I had a chance with IVF.
“I was in a relationship at the time and before I had a chance to go to the fertility clinic and start treatment, I made the most remarkable discovery. I had fallen pregnant naturally.
“My relationship broke up, so I was a single mum, but it didn’t matter.
“I gave birth to my son Miles in April last year, and he has made my life complete.
“I never thought that when I was battling through chemotherapy and had my heart broken on Valentine’s Day, I would ever be a mum.
“He’s my little miracle – and he has certainly mended my broken heart.”
The Ben Saunders Foundation is a charity that supports teenagers and young adults with cancer across the UK.
It was set up by Tom Saunders, whose son Ben died after a rare form of cancer.
The organisation provides holidays for families who are currently battling cancer or have been bereaved by cancer, and has so far raised more than £750,000 in Ben’s memory.
Chrissy says she ‘couldn’t stop crying’ after her diagnosis[/caption]
Chrissy, from Bristol, was later told she was cancer-free[/caption]
Ewing sarcoma
EWING sarcoma is a type of bone cancer, also called bone sarcoma.
It can occur anywhere in the body, but it is most commonly found in the pelvis, thigh, shin, ribs and shoulder blades.
Ewing sarcoma is most often found in teenagers and young adults (aged 10 to 24), but it can happen at other ages.
It is slightly more common in men than women.
Each year, around 90 people are diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma in the UK.
Symptoms can be vague but usually include pain and swelling in the affected area.
Other possible signs include: mobility issues, tenderness, a fever, fatigue, numbness, weight loss, loss of appetite, breathlessness.
Like most types of cancer, treatment will depend on the position, size, stage and grade of your cancer, but it can involve surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
Source: Macmillan and Bone Cancer Research Trust
