The Crown's Olivia Williams Reveals That She'll Never Be Cancer-Free
The Crown star Olivia Williams has given a stark revelation following her 7 year battle with pancreatic cancer, saying that if she had been treated for the right condition sooner, “then one operation possibly could have cleared the whole thing and I could describe myself as cancer-free, which I cannot now ever be.”Speaking with The Times, the actress revealed that she spent four years seeing ten different doctors in three different countries trying to get to the bottom of symptoms she was experiencing, such as fatigue and chronic diarrhoea.She was originally diagnosed with lupus before being told it was likely that she was menopausal before discovering that actually, she had a 7cm by 4cm tumour in her pancreas, which a biopsy showed was cancerous.Olivia is now supporting Pancreatic Cancer UKExplaining how difficult the cancer is to diagnose, she said: “The average time from diagnosis to death is three months – and that figure has not improved in 50 years.“It takes an average person with my cancer [a VIPoma cancer within the pancreas] 11 visits to the GP to be diagnosed. For me it was probably about 21 times.”Olivia is supporting Pancreatic Cancer UK – the London Marathon’s charity of the year – in raising awareness in a plea for donations to fund earlier detection of pancreatic cancer.“Because it’s so quick and so shocking, people tend to liken losing someone to this cancer to losing them in a car crash. “What could change that is early detection with a test that could be as simple as breathing into a bag at your GP. We’re incredibly close, we just need to get it over the line.”On their website, Pancreatic Cancer UK say: “80% of people with pancreatic cancer are diagnosed too late. Too late for treatment, too late to survive.“Developing new tools to improve the detection of pancreatic cancer would mean that more people are diagnosed earlier, giving them the chance to have life-saving treatment, and saving thousands of lives every year.”“Be vigilant”“It’s too late for me, and for all these people who are running in the marathon who’ve lost a parent or a friend, who could have been saved by a pancreatectomy [removal of the pancreas] if the cancer had been found before it spread,” Olivia said.She urges that until early detection is available, we should follow the advice of her surgeon and be vigilant about any changes in faeces for three weeks or more.Pancreatic Cancer UK also advise looking for the following symptoms: Indigestion which is a painful, burning feeling in your chest, upper tummy or throat.Tummy pain or back pain are common symptoms. The pain may start as discomfort in the upper tummy and spread to the back.Changes to poo, including diarrhoea (runny poo), constipation (when you find it harder to poo) and pale, oily, smelly poo that’s hard to flush (steatorrhoea).Unexplained weight loss – losing a lot of weight without meaning to.Jaundice, which causes yellow skin and eyes, dark pee, pale poo and itchy skin.Losing your appetite.Recently diagnosed diabetes, which is a condition where the amount of sugar in the blood (blood sugar level) is too high.Problems digesting your food, which causes bloating, lots of wind, burping, and feeling full up quickly.Feeling or being sick (nausea and vomiting).Blood clots in a vein (deep vein thrombosis or DVT).Fatigue, which is feeling very tired all the time, even if you rest.Less common symptoms of pancreatic cancer include fever, shivering, and generally feeling unwell, and depression or anxiety without any obvious cause.If you think you may have pancreatic cancer, speak to your GP. If you need support for yourself or a loved one with the condition, visit the Pancreatic Cancer UK website to find community or personal support.Related...Jamie Theakston Says He's 'Cancer Free' Ahead Of Heart Radio ReturnColon Cancer: 3 Or More Of These Symptoms Puts You At Over 6X Higher Risk, Doctor SaysThis Early Liver Cancer Symptom Can Show Up When You’re Eating
