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Family and friends of Louise Gleadell are mourning her death after her cancer diagnosis was initially dismissed as breastfeeding pain.
Louise died on 31 March. Fox News reports that the 38-year-old British mother of three was diagnosed with cervical cancer in February 2016 after doctors had initially put her pain down to post-natal symptoms.
She had lost valuable time due to her misdiagnosis while her disease spread but Louise refused to give up.
According to the Daily Mail she tried to take part in an immunotherapy trial through the national health service to prolong her life, but she claimed she was denied access to the treatment because she didn’t have “enough” cancer.
According to the Leicester Mercury, she then spent more than $280 000 (more than R3 million) on an experimental treatment to extend her life at a clinic in Germany.
She used money from her life savings and contributions from her GoFundMe webpage.
News.com.au reports that the family posted a message on their Facebook fundraising page shortly after her passing which read, “Our beautiful Louise passed away peacefully this morning surrounded by love.
"We are eternally grateful for all the love and support you all gave us over the past two years. Louise never ever gave up the fight – she did everything she possibly could to be here for as long as possible for her three boys.
"She is at peace now, and free from all the pain and suffering.”
Speaking to The Sun last year, Louise described how her initial fears were dismissed by medics.
“The doctors kept saying to me, ‘Oh, it’s because you’re breastfeeding. Baby is waking up in the night, you’re not getting as much sleep’,” she said.
Tests were done and she was told that apart from low calcium, she was in good health. “He [the doctor] also looked at my cervix several times and told me that it looked normal when there was a great big tumor on it.”
Sources: Daily Mail, Leicester Mercury, Fox News
