Becky Small, a 33-year-old logistics manager from Hampshire, was misdiagnosed by two GPs before finally being told she had stage four metastatic ovarian cancer after visiting A&E. The mother of three experienced severe bloating that felt like being "nine months' pregnant" and was initially prescribed anti-inflammatory medication and then treatment for gastroenteritis without proper testing.
Misdiagnosis and delayed treatment
Becky noticed "severe bloating" in her abdomen in April 2026, describing it as "really hard" and uncomfortable enough to disrupt her sleep. She also experienced pain on the right side of her back. On April 27, she visited a GP who examined her, requested a urine sample, and prescribed anti-inflammatory medication. When her condition showed no improvement, she saw a different GP on April 30, who she claims did not carry out any tests or examine her abdomen before prescribing medication for suspected gastroenteritis.
By early May, Becky described her abdomen as "rock solid," leading her to attend A&E on May 5. There, two doctors examined her properly and were "shocked" that neither blood tests nor CT scans had been done previously. That same evening, she was told that doctors had discovered two lesions on her ovaries and one on her kidney. After a biopsy on May 20, she received her diagnosis of stage four metastatic ovarian cancer on June 1 and started chemotherapy four days later.
Impact on family
Becky has three children: Logan, 10, Harley, 8, and Iris, 4. She and her husband Paul, 34, decided against telling Iris about the cancer because she is "too young to understand." Telling the two eldest children was "the hardest conversation" she has ever had. Becky said: "My daughter starts school this year and that is the bit that scares me the most – that I'm not going to see her start school. I just want to be a mum to my kids and to be a wife to my husband."
A fundraiser has been launched to support the family financially during treatment. Becky said the donations will allow them to make memories like "going to the park and having an ice cream," adding: "It's just things I want them to remember if I'm not here."
Ovarian cancer symptoms and awareness
According to the NHS, main symptoms of ovarian cancer include bloating, pain in the tummy or between the hips, loss of appetite, increased urgency or frequency of urination, and back pain. Becky believes ovarian cancer is "silent and deadly" and urges young women to watch for symptoms and seek tests if concerned. She said: "I don't want other women or even my own daughter to have to go through what I'm going through."
Becky has had two sessions of chemotherapy since June 5 and is yet to experience major side effects. She will have four more rounds by September and a full hysterectomy in August. She does not want to know her prognosis because she wants to "enjoy what time" she has left without worrying that she "may not wake up in the morning." Looking back, she said: "I think I probably should have pushed to have extra tests done. If they had just run some more tests before, then I may be further along than where I am now. If I hadn't taken myself to A&E, then I probably wouldn't be here now."
