A social media star opened up on her fight with cancer in several videos before sadly passing away at 26.
Mackenzie Paul went viral back in 2023 after she started to release content about her diagnosis with acute myeloid leukaemia diagnosis.
The TikToker's husband posted a video online recently that confirmed that she had died, stating that he was 'blessed' to have been with 'the best woman out there', claiming that it was 'a miracle' that she fought for that long.
While the young influencer was battling the deadly disease though, she shared several warnings with viewers that could be a sign of cancer, across a number of videos.
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One of the most notable posts came in 2023, where she spoke of the first symptoms she noticed, advising others with the same signs to seek medical attention.
The caption read: "Everyone's diagnosis is different. But one thing remains the same. Listening to your body is key."
Speaking to followers, she began: "So in the first week of medical school, I had a clinical rotation where I was following a nurse around, and we ended up in a patient's room, and nothing was happening, the nurse was just talking to the patient."
Mackenzie noticed that after standing in the same spot, she 'ended up getting really dizzy', before passing out.
She said it was 'really, really embarrassing', saying that it might be a fluke due to nerves, a lack of food, or not sleeping enough.
"It was weird," she admitted, before admitting that she 'brushed that off'.
One week later, she was put on clinical rotation and while standing in the same spot again, she felt dizzy once again but did not pass out.
She did though, call her primary care provider, who ordered her 'some labs and a Holter monitor', which revealed something shocking.
"I had low red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets, low haemoglobin, low hematocrit, like, it was a mess," Mackenzie recalled, adding: "I remember thinking at that point, like, god, please don't let this be cancer."
Sadly, although doctors hoped it was a virus, test revealed that she had leukaemia.
Mackenzie said that apart from passing out, she didn't experience any other symptoms: "I didn't get sick, I didn't have fevers, I was feeling a little more tired than usual...
"I was also a med student and everyone in medical school is tired, so, I don't know, it's just weird how it all happened."
She told others to pay attention to signs from their body, telling followers: "If something feels off or weird, or you have a gut feeling about your health, just get it checked out."
NHS advice on acute myeloid leukaemia
According to the NHS, tiredness is one of the symptoms of the cancer, with warning signs often developing over a number of weeks.
These can get more serious as the number of immature white blood cells increases.
Some of these symptoms include:
- Feeling tired or weak
- Looking pale or 'washed out'
- Unusual and frequent bruising or bleeding, such as bleeding gums or nosebleeds
- Breathlessness
- Frequent infections
- Losing weight without trying to
Acute myeloid leukaemia is a rare form of cancer, affecting around 3,100 people every year in the UK, with risk of the disease increasing with age.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact Macmillan’s Cancer Support Line on 0808 808 00 00, 8am–8pm seven days a week.
Topics: Social Media, TikTok, Health
Joshua Nair