A 39-year-old mom from Australia living with terminal cancer has detailed the one symptom she wishes she didn't ignore.
In May 2023, Krystal Maeyke was diagnosed with stage four metastatic bowel cancer, and doctors devastatingly found they had no cure for the mom.
Prior to that, Krystal experienced sharp stabbing pains in her stomach, which she initially shrugged off as a food allergy.
But the uncomfortable sensations in her lower abdomen for the next three months, to the point where the pain brought Krystal to her knees in agony.
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"At first I thought I would get checked for food intolerances. As I was fit and healthy, exercising daily and eating a wholesome balanced diet," Krystal explained on her TikTok channel.
"Tests came back negative to gluten intolerance. But the pain continued. Some days I would be in agony and have to keep a heat pack on it."
Krystal was eventually airlifted to Alice Springs Hospital, some 280 miles away from her desert hometown of Yulara, in Australia's Northern Territory.
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It was there she received her devastating cancer diagnosis.
She said in a video uploaded to TikTok: "I underwent a series of tests. That's when I knew it was something serious. I was woken up later that night by a doctor whose words I will never forget.
"'Krystal, I've got bad news…. You have cancer,'" the doctor told her. "The weight of those words, accompanied by my question of 'How do you know?' and the doctor's response, 'It's everywhere,' shook me to my core."
Another symptom the mom ignored was night sweats, which she put down to the increased temperatures over the summer months.
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"I was experiencing persistent night sweats a few months before I was diagnosed," Krystal said. "I would wake up during the night drenched in sweat, enough so I had to change clothes and sheets."
"It was summertime, and I slept with the air [conditioner] on and a fan, so I just thought it was my air [conditioner] not keeping up with the summer heat. So I ignored this sign."
A subsequent GoFundMe page has been set up by Krystal as a result of the 'potential loss for my 12-year-old son, Maison'.
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"A vulnerable child who may miss out on the love and presence of his mother," Krystal penned. "Maison witnessing the toll that this disease is and will take on me is already challenging."
You can donate to Krystal's GoFundMe here.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the American Cancer Society on 1-800-227-2345 or via their live chat feature, available 24/7 every day of the year.
Callum Jones