Woman Diagnosed with Vulvar Cancer at 27 Reveals First Symptom
Suffering from vulvar cancer at the age of 27, a woman named Louise from England is speaking out to reveal the surprising first symptom that prompted her to see a doctor.
According to the World Health Organization, 20 million new cases of cancer and 9.7 million deaths were recorded in 2022. Today, approximately one in five people develop this disease during their lifetime. Finally, about one in nine men and one in twelve women die from it.
In an interview with Glamour UK magazine, Louise, a Pilates instructor from London, shares her story after being diagnosed with vulvar cancer at the age of 27. The mother of two, now 43, also opens up about developing a different form of cancer 15 years after her initial diagnosis and discusses her treatment and life marked by the disease.
«I was 27 years old, my son was about nine months old, and I noticed a spot on my vulva. I was uncomfortable in my jeans and didn’t want to be intimate with my husband because of it, but at the same time, I thought to myself: it’s just a spot, it will go away,» she recalls.
Six weeks after the appearance of the spot, Louise noticed a worsening: «It was an ulcerated and blackened area with edges that looked burnt, and when I went to the doctor, she immediately said, ‘That doesn’t look good. We need to check what it is.'» After a biopsy, she learned that she had a very aggressive form of vulvar cancer. This was surprising as it is usually older women who are affected by this type of cancer.
Facing an extreme case, Louise had to undergo emergency surgery. «I had surgery and they ended up removing my left labia minora [the inner vaginal lip] and somehow stitched the entire left side together. After removing all of that area, they still weren’t sure if they had removed all traces of the cancer.»
Since cancer cells can spread, doctors feared that the cancer might spread to the lymph nodes in the groin. They wanted to remove the lymph nodes from the mother of two. «I went back to the hospital for another surgery, and they removed the two nodes, which are located at the top of the thigh and groin on both sides. The good news is that there was no cancer in that area. I was very lucky: I didn’t need chemotherapy or radiotherapy, and they were sure they had caught all of the virus.»
Unfortunately, the road to recovery was not easy for Louise. «After this operation, I had a very difficult recovery. Once the lymph nodes were removed, I had leaks of lymphatic fluid for days. In addition to taking care of a young baby, the wound on my right node opened up. I had a gaping hole the size of a coin in the top of my thigh. It got infected and it was really unpleasant: my husband had to remove it, and I ended up in the hospital with a MRSA infection.»
The young woman tried to reassure herself by thinking that her cancer was no longer there, and that was the main thing.
During her interview, Louise explains that she has suffered from a skin condition on her vulva called lichen sclerosus throughout her life. Lichen sclerosus is a skin condition that causes itchy white spots on the vagina or other parts of the body. It is not contagious and can cause thickening of the skin, scarring, and tightness.
As she goes on to explain, doctors now know that there is a subtle link between lichen sclerosus and vulvar cancer. In December 2022, 15 years after her first diagnosis, Louise was diagnosed with another form of vulvar cancer. Being closely monitored by London health services, she is speaking out today to raise awareness among women and urge them to listen to their instincts when they notice something abnormal on their bodies. Any spot, lump, deformity, or change should be taken seriously.