ThatsLife
  • WIN
  • News
  • Real Life
  • Food
  • Lifestyle
  • Pets
  • Your Stars
  • Puzzles
  • Podcasts
  • Video
ThatsLife
  • WIN
  • News
  • Real Life
  • Food
  • Lifestyle
  • Pets
  • Your Stars
  • Puzzles
  • Podcasts
  • Video
Subscribe
  1. Home
  2. Health

My runny nose was cancer

So brave! - by Amber Wemyss
  • 22 Sep 2021
My runny nose was cancer

Steph Ogden, 19, never imagined that her cold symptoms were deadly.

Recently, she spoke with that's life! about her journey with lymphoma and how it taught her to never take things for granted.

Waking in the middle of the night, I was covered in sweat. It was February this year, and I’d felt fine when I’d gone to bed after hanging out with some friends at their place.

Now, though, my nose was runny and my throat was full of phlegm.

I must be coming down with the flu, I figured.

Aged 18, I was rarely sick, and usually shook bugs off quickly.

Working at McDonald’s around studying to be a nurse, I didn’t have any shifts rostered over the next five days.

If I just lie low, I’ll be back to normal in no time, I thought.

Still unwell two days later, I bought some cold and flu tablets from the supermarket, and curled up on the lounge to watch movies with my mum, Michelle, 49.

‘How do you feel?’ Mum would ask, checking on how I was.

‘The same,’ I kept answering. Three days later, though, I had the sniffles and a chesty cough.

Visiting a GP, I assumed I had a chest infection.

Examining my throat, the doctor said it was swollen.

‘It looks like a sinus infection,’ he concluded, explaining I should drink water and keep taking my cold and flu tablets.

‘I’m sure you’ll feel better soon,’ Mum reassured me back home.

Supplied

Me before my diagnosis

Supplied

The next day, my throat was irritated, but I felt well enough to go to work.

But, getting ready in the bathroom, I tasted blood in my mouth.

That’s weird, I thought.

I spat into the sink and noticed a tiny splatter of blood on the white porcelain.

Not thinking much of it, I wiped down the sink and headed off for work. By lunchtime, though, my throat felt red raw and I texted Mum to tell her about the blood.

Working as a receptionist at our local hospital, she convinced me to come in for a chest X-ray.

Leaving work, I went to Emergency and Mum met me there. To my shock, the X-ray revealed my lungs were quite swollen.

‘It looks similar to what is typically found in a patient with lymphoma,’ the doctor said, explaining I’d need more scans to be sure.

Tests showed I did have an infection, though.

‘You’ll need to be admitted to the hospital so we can start you on antibiotics,’ he added.

Confused, I’d never heard of lymphoma, so I assumed it was the type of infection I had, and Mum didn’t give me any reason to think otherwise.

Two days later, I was still feeling very sick, and I’d also been diagnosed with pneumonia.

That’s when I was transferred to Princess Alexandra Hospital, Qld, for a lymph node biopsy.

I was kept in for monitoring for two weeks and then the results finally came back.

Nothing could have prepared me for what the doctor said.

‘I’m afraid you have stage two Hodgkin’s lymphoma,’ he told me, explaining that it was a rare cancer of the lymphatic system.

How could this be happening, I thought. It’d only been a runny nose. Now I had cancer?

‘I had no idea,’ I cried to Mum, distraught.

‘I thought there was a chance they might be wrong and I didn’t want to scare you,’ Mum said, admitting she’d known all along what lymphoma was.

I also found out it’s often called a ‘silent killer,’ as the symptoms – a runny nose, cough and night sweats – are easily confused with less sinister illnesses, such as flu and infections.

Most people are diagnosed after they break out in lumps or rashes, so I was grateful my cancer had been found early.

‘You will have to undergo immediate chemotherapy,’ the doctor told me.

The chemo could affect my fertility, but as I needed treatment right away there was no time to freeze my eggs. Instead, I’d have hormone injections to try to protect my ovaries.

I began my first round of chemo within an hour.

Supplied

Me, Mum and my brother Ben

Supplied

Two months into my treatment, patches of my hair started falling out in my bed.

‘It’s not fair,’ I cried to Mum, gutted.

While most of my friends were going out for drinks and letting their hair down, mine was falling out in clumps, and I felt rotten after chemo sessions.

‘You’ll get through this,’ Mum assured me.

The following week, my best friend, Abby, 20, came around to help me shave my head.

‘You’re the only person who could look good bald,’ she smiled afterwards.

She knew exactly what to say to cheer me up. Still, I couldn’t help but feel as if people were staring at me when I was out in public.

So I got a long, blonde wig to help boost my confidence.

Incredibly, in June, after my fifth round of chemo, I was declared cancer free.

But I still needed another three rounds, as well as radiation therapy, to ensure it didn’t return.

Seven months on from my diagnosis, I’m doing great and feel lucky to be alive.

And I’ve found a supportive partner, Josh, 19, who I met at the pub.

Though I wouldn’t wish what I’ve been through on anyone, it’s helped me never take things for granted.

Life is short – live every day like it’s your last.

  • News
  • Real Life
  • Health
Amber Wemyss
Amber Wemyss
Amber is a Features Writer for that's life! Her work has also been published with 7News, New Idea, Practical Parenting, Kidspot, Daily Mail, The Sun, Daily Mirror, Pick Me Up, Real People, Chat and Daily Star.

Subscribe to That's Life!-+ save!

Subscribe to That's Life!

Subscribe Now
Subscribe to That's Life!

Subscribe to That's Life!-+ save!

Subscribe to That's Life!

Subscribe Now
Subscribe to That's Life!

Recommended to you

There's A Better, Faster Way To Predict Sepsis
Watch 0:37

There's A Better, Faster Way To Predict Sepsis

{headline}

{headline}

I SHAVED my head on my WEDDING day!

I SHAVED my head on my WEDDING day!

My unborn baby saved my life

My unborn baby saved my life

Getting shot saved my life

Getting shot saved my life

Mums battling rare blood cancer together become best friends: 'I'm going to kick cancer's butt!'

Mums battling rare blood cancer together become best friends: 'I'm going to kick cancer's butt!'

{headline}

{headline}

Mum diagnosed with rare cancer in her foot after first baby saved by her HIGH HEELS

Mum diagnosed with rare cancer in her foot after first baby saved by her HIGH HEELS

The gameshow that gave us back our dad

The gameshow that gave us back our dad

Weight loss surgery cured my cancer

Weight loss surgery cured my cancer

{headline}

{headline}

I had a baby at 53, then hours later I felt a lump

I had a baby at 53, then hours later I felt a lump

Girl born with THOUSANDS of cysts on her face has revolutionary surgery

Girl born with THOUSANDS of cysts on her face has revolutionary surgery

She beat cancer TWICE then her ex did this

She beat cancer TWICE then her ex did this

How a freckle did THIS

How a freckle did THIS

This woman beat cancer - but Facebook BANNED photos of her mastectomy scars

This woman beat cancer - but Facebook BANNED photos of her mastectomy scars

Having a baby CURED this woman's brain tumours

Having a baby CURED this woman's brain tumours

Woman admits to FAKING cancer to 'save her marriage'

Woman admits to FAKING cancer to 'save her marriage'

ThatsLife
  • Gold Club
  • Online Entry FAQ
  • About Us
  • Subscribe Today
  • Contact Us
  • Terms
  • Competitions
  • Privacy Policy
ThatsLife Magazine Subscribe
  • Gold Club
  • Online Entry FAQ
  • About Us
  • Subscribe Today
  • Contact Us
  • Terms
  • Competitions
  • Privacy Policy

Brands

  • New Idea
  • Who
  • Girlfriend
  • Practical Parenting

Our Network

  • Better Homes and Gardens
  • BHG Shop
  • marie claire
  • Beauty Crew
  • New Idea food
  • Women's Weekly Food
  • Bounty Parents
  • Home Beautiful
  • All Recipes
  • 7plus
  • 7News
  • Sunrise
  • Starts at 60
  • The West Australian
  • Perth Now
  • 7mate
  • 7Sport
  • Hard to Find
© 2022 Are Media PTY LTD
All products are independently selected, tested or recommended by our team of experts.If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Get more from

Magazine Subscription Offer

Subscribe to That's Life!-+ save!

Shop This Offer
Subscribe to That's Life!