Warning: This article contains discussion of cancer which some readers may find distressing
A man who thought he was developing an intolerance to his favourite foods was instead given a life-changing diagnosis.
Rob McPherson, from Manchester, considered himself to be 'a normal guy playing football every week' when he started to feel 'a little bit ill' in October 2017.
The now-39-year-old began experiencing stomach cramps and wrongly thought it was due to 'becoming intolerant to bread or beer'.
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"At the time, I thought ‘I hope I'm not intolerant to those because I quite like my beer and my pizza," Rob recalled. "The stomach cramps turned into bloating as well. I was eating stuff and wouldn't be enjoying the food as much."
Rob, who works in digital media and marketing, was then forced to take a week off after he stopped enjoying food and was struggling to sleep.
"By the Thursday of that week, my boyfriend Sam, who’s now my husband, forced me to call the non-emergency number for the NHS," he said.
"I thought they would tell me to take some paracetamol or something. But they sent out an ambulance for me."
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A few checks later, medics informed him that he needed to be taken to hospital immediately after a scan showed a mass growing around his stomach area.
Rob was diagnosed with bowel cancer three days before Christmas Day, and was operated on within just 12 hours.
Doctors opted for a biopsy and a stoma, which is a surgical opening on the abdomen where a section of the bowel is brought out to the surface.
“I was scared and nervous, but it had to be done,” he recalled. “After the operation, I was off work for the rest of the month trying to get used to the stoma.
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“I was figuring out how it works, how to manage it and to get my energy back up after the operation.”
Rob endured five weeks of chemotherapy and radiotherapy to reduce the size of the 7cm tumour, which was removed in July 2018.
His stoma was removed in February 2019, and left nothing but a scar.
“I want to tell others not to ignore any worrying symptoms: the earlier you find this, the more treatable it is,” he warned. “I probably left it a bit longer than I should have: I maybe thought I could tough it out or I could just deal with it.
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“I think quite a lot of people are worried about causing a fuss and giving the GPs more work.”
Rob was discharged from the colorectal nurse's care in June 2023, and has thanked the NHS for providing 'brilliant care'.
“I am now cancer-free and able to do the things I love like playing football and spending time with my partner, family, and friends,” he added.
“Remember, you know your body best, so pay attention to any warning signs and get checked as soon as possible if you’re concerned.”
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.
Anish Vij