A West Fife woman has revealed her shock at finding out she had a 21lb ovarian cyst the size of a football.
Jane Alexander (41), of Kelty, was continually asked when her baby was due. She tried numerous diets and exercise but failed to lose an inch from her waistline.
Mrs Alexander did not realise that the cause was an ovarian cyst, which was growing by five centimetres a week.
She said, “I looked like I was expecting twins, but no wonder I know now the cyst weighed even more than twins would.
“The fact that I was carrying something that large is horrifying. It was taking over my body. I dropped three dress sizes just from having it removed.”
She added, “I am one of the lucky ones I’m so very glad it was caught early.”
Mrs Alexander knew she was not expecting but was concerned when she could no longer see her feet. At 5ft 7in she weighed over 14 stone, and decided enough was enough.
She joined Weight Watchers, but despite a year of eating right and walking miles a day the weight would not budge.
Mrs Alexander discovered the real reason when she visited her doctor for a routine prescription renewal in July 2009. When she mentioned she had been getting pains in her right side he ordered an ultrasound and a CT scan at Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy, and the giant mass in her abdomen could be seen.OperationMrs Alexander said, “When they said I needed a hysterectomy I didn’t have to think twice about it. I had the operation to remove the cyst 10 days later.
“I felt like a different person like an actual weight had been lifted. I could see my feet. I needed new clothes because my size 18 jogging bottoms didn’t fit any more I had gone down to a size 12. I was so glad that thing wasn’t there any more.”
Doctors told Mrs Alexander that the cyst wrapped around her right ovary had been cancerous and that they had caught it just in time. Fortunately, the cancer had not spread and she did not need chemotherapy or radiotherapy.
Mrs Alexander returned to Weight Watchers 21 pounds lighter and reached her target weight of 10 stone two pounds.
She has had the all-clear but has check-ups every three months, and she is trying to raise awareness of ovarian cancer, which 6800 women are diagnosed with in the UK each year.
Mrs Alexander supports the charity Target Ovarian Cancer and held a zumba event for 100 people on Sunday to raise more than £1000 for it.
She said, “I had never even heard of ovarian cancer before this happened to me. The symptoms are bloating, abdominal pain and tiredness I just thought I was working too hard.”
She added, “I want the next woman who has a cyst like me and doesn’t know about it to have her life saved too.”For more information visit www.targetovariancancer.org.uk