Woman diagnosed with cancer was told she was 'too young' for it after explaining terrifying symptom to doctor years before

Warning: This article contains discussion of cancer which some readers may find distressing.

A mom-of-three has detailed the haunting moment she was told she was 'too young' to be diagnosed with colon cancer years before receiving the news.

Kelly, whose second name remains anonymous, had complained about experiencing blood in her stool years before receiving her diagnosis.

At the time she opted to visit her local doctor but the issue was misdiagnosed as 'probably just hemorrhoids', Kelly explained to The Patient Story.

"I had some blood in my stool years prior, and I had went to my doctor, and my doctor had told me, 'You're too young for colon cancer'," she shared.

Kelly was misdiagnosed with hemorrhoids before discovering she had colon cancer years later (The Patient Story/Kelly C)

"And at that time, I was in my early 40s, and he said, 'Oh, you're too young for colon cancer, so it's just a hemorrhoid or something'.

"And so, you know, I blew that off. I wish that I would have pushed and said, 'No, let's look into this more, let's do a colonoscopy'."

She continued on with her life, but Kelly later began experiencing constipation which worsened over time until six to eight weeks before the devastating news - describing it as 'very severe abdominal cramping'. But after it subsided she continued on with her life and move to Texas on her own.

The overwhelming pain became too much for Kelly so she checked herself into the emergency room.

While in there she believed she had only checked in for severe constipation and the worry over it being cancer didn't cross her mind due to the misdiagnoses she received years prior.

After moving to Texas on her own, the mom-of-three learned that she had colon cancer less than a month later (The Patient Story/Kelly C)

Kelly explained how she began throwing up, and when the doctor was examining her they told her how they wanted to give her a CT scan - while mentioning that it isn't standard practise to do so but that her stomach was 'pretty distended'.

Detailing the moment she discovered she had cancer, she said: "[The doctor] said, 'You have colon cancer', and I just remember the room just completely going like a funnel. The nurse was next to him, and it was just like darkness in the whole room.

"I don't remember saying very much, I just remember asking them if they could give me a moment by myself, and when they left the room I completely broke down.

"Balling tears because here I am in a state, all by myself - I know no one, I had just moved cross country, so I was completely alone."

The cancer later spread to her liver, upgrading her diagnosis to stage 4. However, Kelly was eligible for surgery to remove the liver tumors and now 'embraces life with renewed passion'.

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.