Hannah Dean mistook throat cancer for tonsillitis (Picture: Jam Press/@thebigc_journey)
A mum has shared her trauma of ‘living a nightmare’ after what she thought was tonsillitis actually turned out to be throat cancer.
At the end of 2022, 33-year-old Hannah Dean noticed an enlarged gland on her neck after she’d undergone a particularly bad tonsil infection.
Hannah also had a slight cough, so she decided to visit the GP – where she was referred for a biopsy and, in January 2023, was diagnosed with throat cancer, news that was heartbreaking for her and her husband Chris.
‘It was unbelievable because I felt well and attended the gym regularly, I was working full-time shifts,’ she said.
‘I was shocked, in disbelief, it was like living in a nightmare.’
The doctors found that her lymph nodes weren’t the source of the cancer, so she needed to have her tonsils removed and more biopsies taken. Her recovery was a struggle, and after Hannah ended up visiting A&E with persistent vomiting, it was confirmed that she had stage three laryngeal cancer.
The 33-year-old was in ‘disbelief’ following her diagnosis (Picture: Jam Press/@thebigc_journey)
Hannah was diagnosed with stage three laryngeal cancer (Picture: Jam Press/@thebigc_journey)
This form of the disease occurs when cancerous cells form in the tissues of the larynx, the part of the throat found between the base of the tongue and the trachea. The larynx is also where the vocal cords are located.
As part of her treatment, Hannah underwent two intense rounds of chemotherapy and 30 radiotherapy sessions.
‘I was very sick from day one and couldn’t keep anything down.
‘And I was put on a feeding tube but the food would come straight up because I was vomiting numerous times a day.’
Alongside these gruelling symptoms, Hannah’s blood pressure was low as well as her oxygen, meaning that she ‘struggled to even keep’ her ‘eyes open.’
Dean’s treatment finished in April 2023 (Picture: Jam Press/@thebigc_journey)
The most difficult part, however, was being completely unable to talk or swallow, so she couldn’t ‘express how scared’ she was.
In April 2023, Hannah’s treatment finished and she was sent home a week later, though her recovery was slow – and she needed physiotherapy and speech therapy.
A mum to two twin girls, Hannah describes her husband and daughters as her ‘rocks’ throughout the nightmarish experience.
Throat cancer symptoms
The main symptom of laryngeal cancer is having a hoarse voice for more than three weeks.
Other symptoms include:
- a change in your voice, such as sounding hoarse
- pain when swallowing or difficulty swallowing
- a lump or swelling in your neck
- a long-lasting cough or breathlessness
- a persistent sore throat or earache
- a high-pitched wheezing noise when you breathe
- in severe cases, difficulty breathing
Some people may also experience bad breath, unintentional weight loss, or fatigue (extreme tiredness).
Source: NHS
‘We never used the word cancer, we didn’t want to scare them’, she adds, reflecting that they would often ‘wake in the night and cry for mummy’ whilst she was in hospital.
Thankfully, Hannah received the all-clear in July 2023 and is now in remission, though she still endures lasting effects – including a dry mouth and fatigue.
Hannah still feels ‘upset and anxious’ about her diagnosis (Picture: Jam Press/@thebigc_journey)
Undergoing regular scans, Hannah still feels ‘upset and anxious’ about her experiences and is praying that the cancer doesn’t return. But now, she’s spreading awareness of larynx cancer and sharing her journey on Instagram.
‘Just because it is rare in young women, it can happen’, she concludes.
‘Make sure you get cough and lumps checked.
‘I wish people knew how tough the treatment is…the side effects are everlasting.’
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