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Model Who Blamed Looking 4 Months Pregnant On Weight Gain Is Horrified To Know She Had A Tumor

Discussion in 'Oncology' started by Dr.Scorpiowoman, Aug 14, 2016.

  1. Dr.Scorpiowoman

    Dr.Scorpiowoman Golden Member

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    'My food baby was a TUMOUR': Lingerie model who blamed looking 4 months pregnant on weight gain is horrified to be told she had a huge growth in her womb

    • Shorntay Allen noticed her belly swelling but thought she was bloated
    • Doctor revealed she had a huge fibroid - a benign growth - in her womb
    • Was told she may need her womb removed- stopping her having children
    • Thankfully medics could remove growth without hampering her fertility
    • 31-year-old has made it into final 10 of a lingerie modelling competition

    A personal assistant who blamed her swollen belly on bloating after eating was horrified to discover she actually had a tumour.

    Shorntay Allen, from London, was told she had a fibroid - a benign growth in the lining of her womb - making her look four months pregnant.

    The 31-year-old had noticed her stomach was looking larger than normal for around three months but assumed it was because she had eaten too much.

    In September 2014, she went to the doctor about her stomach - and was stunned to be told she had a huge fibroid the size of a grapefruit.

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    Shorntay Allen, 31, thought her swollen belly was due to a food baby - but was shocked to be told it was a benign tumour in her womb. After having it removed she entered into a lingerie modelling competition - and has just found out she is in the final 10

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    She noticed her belly swelling for three months - but thought it was just due to overeating

    Around one in three women develop fibroids - benign growths in or around the womb - most often between the ages of 30 and 50.

    She was devastated when doctors said she may have to have a hysterectomy - which would mean she could never carry children and could bring on an early menopause.

    But thankfully she was able to have a less drastic operation called a myomectomy, in which the fibroid, but not the womb, is removed.

    And after the operation the swelling in her stomach went down - and two months later she had the confidence to enter into a lingerie modelling competition.


    She has just found out she is in the final 10 - and is awaiting news on the winner.

    Recalling being told her 'food baby' was a tumour, Miss Allen said: 'When I was told of the tumour I literally just said "okay", I didn't show how I really felt to anyone.

    'When I was on my own I was really upset but I didn't want to worry my family.

    She continued: 'It was a big shock when the doctor talked about the impact the tumour could have and it scared me.

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    Doctors said she might need a hysterectomy - a prospect which left her devastated as it would mean she could never have children

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    Thankfully Miss Allen was able to have a less drastic operation to remove only the tumour - which was as big as a grapefruit

    'I was worried at the fact they were using the word hysterectomy, I was only 29 at the time and I thought I was way too young.

    'I want kids, I was really worried whether I would be okay or not.'

    Around 40 per cent of women develop fibroids — most often between the ages of 30 and 50.

    WHAT ARE FIBROIDS?

    Around one in three women develop fibroids — benign growths in or around the womb - most often between the ages of 30 and 50.

    The exact cause is unknown, but they are linked to the female hormones oestrogen and progesterone, which are at their highest levels during a woman’s reproductive years. (After the menopause, fibroids often shrink and symptoms ease or disappear.)

    There is a strong genetic predisposition, says Isaac Manyonda, consultant in obstetrics and gynaecology at St George’s Hospital NHS Trust, South-West London and the Newlife Fertility Centre in Epsom, Surrey.

    ‘If your mother had them, you are likely to, as well.’

    But in 50 per cent of women who have them, fibroids do not cause symptoms: they may shrink and disappear without treatment.

    However, the other half experience pelvic pain (from the pressure caused by the fibroids) and heavy and/or extended periods.

    They are thought to develop more frequently in women of African- Caribbean origin.

    It's also thought they occur more often in overweight or obese women because being overweight increases the level of oestrogen in the body.

    They can be treated with medication or surgery.


    The exact cause is unknown, but they are linked to the female hormones oestrogen and progesterone, which are at their highest levels during a woman’s reproductive years.

    After the menopause, fibroids often shrink and symptoms ease or disappear.

    Some women experience no symptoms, but for others the growths leave them in agony, causing symptoms such as heavy periods, pain in the abdomen, back pain and a frequent need to go to the toilet.

    Because of the large size and strange placing of her tumour, doctors initially said she might need a hysterectomy, before suggesting a myomectomy instead.

    This major surgical procedure involved making an incision on the lower abdomen and removing the fibroids from the wall of the uterus.

    She tried to make light of the situation - calling the tumour Humphrey - but felt anxious about the upcoming procedure.


    She said: 'I was generally fit and healthy and I had never had any kind of surgery before, I wasn't sure what was ahead and it made me very anxious.


    'Recovering was really tough, the pain was horrible, it had felt like I had been stabbed repeatedly in my stomach, I'd never felt anything like it.'

    After the operation, Miss Allen's doctor said it had been success - though the team had difficulty cutting off the blood supply to the tumour.

    She was left with a scar, but was delighted her chances of being a mother had not been hampered.

    She said: 'If the worst had happened and I couldn't have had children, saying I would have been devastated is an understatement, I would have been crushed and it would have been the end of a dream.

    'I think I would have been seriously depressed, I didn't know if I would wake up from the operation with my womb gone or not, I just hoped it would still be there.

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    Recovering from the operation was touch, Miss Allen said. She said: 'It had felt like I had been stabbed repeatedly in my stomach, I'd never felt anything like it'

    She continued: 'It was one of the first things I asked when I woke up, I would have had a full on break down.

    'I'm a massive family person and I treat my nieces and nephews like their my own children, my family means the world to me.

    'When I was told the good news I thought, "thank god", I was so happy that I could still be a mother, I was over the moon.'

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    Two months after her operation she entered the Curvy Kate lingerie competition and told the story of how she nearly lost her womb

    Now, she has plans to start her own family, and says she wants five children.

    'My mum says that's unrealistic at my age and that I should settle for three, but you never know, I could always have quintuplets,' she said.

    'I was really relieved and it helped with the healing process because I knew it could have been much worse, but at the same time I felt like after putting my body through that pain and having my scar, I wanted a baby to make it worth it.'

    And two months after the procedure, Miss Allen came across a lingerie modelling competition called Curvy Kate and decided to enter,

    'I'm quite self-conscious after my surgery, with my scar and I've found it quite difficult being intimate with someone but I try to act confident,' she said.

    When Miss Allen arrived at the auditions, she was relieved to see women of different shapes and sizes but then she had to reveal something she had to overcome.

    She said: 'I told the story of my tumour, I hadn't talked about it much so it was quite emotional but I love my womb, it's been through a lot and it's still here.'

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    Now she hopes talking about her tumour in public will help others with fibroids. She said: 'I'm hoping that by me sharing my story it will help and reassure other women who are going through it too.'

    And her honesty paid off as she has since been told she has made it into the final 10.

    Now, she hopes she can go further in the competition in order to help other women with fibroids.

    She said: 'I'm not sure why I've got through, I'm just your "average Joanna", and I don't think there's anything '"wow" about me.

    'I'm hoping that by me sharing my story it will help and reassure other women who are going through it too.'

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    Last edited: Aug 14, 2016

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