A Dundee mum has told how she was forced to get her leg amputated at the age of 25 after being diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.
Chantelle Cox, from Ballumbie, has had a lump in her right ankle since she was six months old, but says she was always told it was harmless.
However, in September, she “thought her life was over” when she was told it was cancerous and her only option was to lose her leg.
‘I cried and cried’
She told The Courier: “When I found out (I had cancer), I cried and cried and cried.
“I didn’t feel like I was Chantelle any more.”
She then “broke down” when she was told about having to go through the amputation.
She added: “I instantly thought of the negative side of it, that my life was over, and had this numb feeling hanging over me.”
Chantelle – who has continued her full-time studies as a social sciences student at Dundee and Angus College through her illness – was originally diagnosed with neurofibromatosis.
The condition causes tumours to grow along the nerves, but they are normally not cancerous.
In June 2022, she had four tumours – which had caused her pain throughout her life – removed.
Bid to raise £10,000 for prosthetic leg
But months later she found out they were cancerous.
She underwent surgery in Aberdeen last week to have her leg amputated above the knee.
Despite her ordeal, Chantelle – who lives with son Harry, one, and partner Jack – wants to remain positive.
She is trying to raise £10,000 towards buying a special prosthetic leg so she can keep doing the things she loves.
Although she can receive one on the NHS, it only provides a basic limb, and she wants one that can help her remain active – including hillwalking.
She has already received more than £7,000, but the leg she wants will cost between £80,000 and £90,000, which she hopes to meet through other fundraising.
She said: “I’ve become so positive about it all.
“I’m alive and that’s the main thing.
“Yes, I might be missing a leg, but I’ll never be in pain again.
“I will actually be able to wear a proper pair of trainers for once in my life, everything’s changed for the better.
“My son keeps trying to grab my hand and take me to his room to play, but I have to tell him that I can’t and that I need to get my crutches first.
“With my leg, I’ll just be able to get up and keep him going.
“As soon as I get my prosthetic I’m going up the Sidlaws.
‘I’ve got a wee boy, ambitions and goals’
“Running might be ambitious, but I’m definitely going to walk up them.
“I’ve got a wee boy, ambitions and goals. I’m never going to let this stop me.”
Chantelle is using both crutches and a wheelchair at her privately-rented flat, which is up a flight of stairs, but she is hoping to find a more accessible home with everything on the same floor.
She hopes that by opening up about her experience, she can help others – and plans on donating anything above her £10,000 goal to charity.
She added: “The response I’ve had has been overwhelming.
“People have said I’ve helped inspire them and it’s so nice to see.
“When people say that to me I’m taken aback – I’m just being myself and living my life.
“Whatever I go over the goal by, it will be donated to Maggie’s Centre or Cancer Research, because they deserve it.
“There needs to be more research because this doesn’t need to happen.
“Some people might not be able to cope with this and if there’s more research, they might not have to go through it.”
Conversation