'I was only 19, I didn't think it was ever going to be something serious, but my friend convinced me to go to the doctor.'
When Maddie Gillespie noticed a mark on her back after a night out, she assumed it was a cigarette burn - but after further investigations, she was dealt a devastating blow.
"But I played ignorant, I was only 19, I didn't think it was ever going to be something serious, but my friend convinced me to go to the doctor. "I had a voice in the back of my head telling me there may have been something wrong. I didn't want to believe it. When I first found out, I was in shock, there was no real reaction from me. My family were devastated, and in pieces, but I shut down. I don't think I have ever cried over it, that's just how I deal with it. Why would I get upset over something that I cannot control?
She added: "They wanted me to start straight away, as a preventative treatment, but I asked could I have a bit of a breather first. I don't have any cancer in my body now, they are pretty certain that everything has been removed now." "When I first got diagnosed, there was a nurse walking into the room with me, and I noticed she had a Teenage Cancer Trust badge on. That is when I knew what I was about to be told," Maddie told Belfast Live.
"When I was first diagnosed, I blamed myself. I thought I maybe could have prevented it from happening but my doctor really reassured me, that I couldn't have done anything to stop it. Now I want to speak out to raise awareness for cancer in young people, and the important work of the Teenage Cancer Trust."
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