Getting cancer is a scary prospect, knowing your body is in a way betraying itself. Huge relief, then, for one young Australian woman who discovered she was riddled with cancer - and lived to tell the tale.
Early in 2017, nursing student Georgia McClennan, from Broadbeach, Gold Coast started suffering from stabbing chest pains which turned into continuous aches.
Despite starting to visit her GP several times a week, docs couldn't figure out what exactly was wrong with the 24-year-old.
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"I was in that much pain I was going once or twice a week to the doctor... It was at this point he asked if perhaps it was all in my head," Georgia told the Gold Coast Bulletin.
Although Georgia looked totally fine on the outside, doctors eventually figured out she had tumours on her spleen and liver - although the sheer extent of her problem was revealed after she had a PET scan.
Radiologists were horrified to find that Georgia's body was absolutely riddled with cancer, which had made its way into every organ in her abdomen.
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"I was just in shock - very shocking. I couldn't believe it could happen to me," she said.
Georgia was diagnosed with Burkitt Lymphoma - a highly aggressive form of cancer that grows rapidly and often spreads quickly through people's central nervous systems.
"All these radiologists came into the room to look at me... They couldn't believe how healthy I looked given what they found inside me," Georgia told the Bulletin. "When I saw the scan, I realised this is very bad.
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"I found out later they thought I was going to die that weekend... I didn't even have my mum there because I hadn't really worried it was cancer."
In a bid to tackle the disease, Georgia had to endure a gruelling three-month course of daily chemotherapy as well as 10 sets of weekly spinal injections.
Thankfully, Georgia's cancer is now in remission and she hopes to one day become an oncology nurse.
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"I guess I just felt really lucky that I was having the treatment and that I have access to treatment," she said.
"I feel like I can be there for people, I can understand what they're going through."
Using her Instagram account - fittingly called 'Being Brave' - Georgia has chronicled her journey through treatment - such as losing her hair and enduring blood transfusions - to show it's possible to enjoy life during and after cancer.
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"You don't realise how much you appreciate a comfortable chair until you are forced to spend some of your most difficult hours in them," she said.
"I never felt like giving up. You go into survival mode and as I thought I was going to die, I didn't want to waste any time I had left feeling sorry for my situation."
It's great to see that Georgia is on the mend. No doubt her story will be of comfort to others fighting cancer.
Featured Image Credit: Instagram/Georgia McClennanTopics: Inspirational, Community, Cancer, Australia