When Mikayla Hancock was taken to the emergency room at 9:50am on March 23, 2026, she didn’t expect to leave later that same day with a cancer diagnosis.
The 29-year-old had spent months battling recurring abdominal pain, bloating and diarrhoea, with the symptoms repeatedly dismissed as gastro, food intolerance or lingering Covid.
Instead, scans revealed a 23cm tumour in her abdomen and doctors diagnosed stage four ovarian cancer.
The disease is often referred to as a “silent” cancer because its symptoms can easily be dismissed.
“I had [heard of ovarian cancer], but you just don’t think these things will ever happen to you,” Mikayla told Yahoo Lifestyle.
According to Cancer Australia, over 1,900 women in Australia are diagnosed with the deadly disease every year, and the symptoms can easily be dismissed as other common issues.
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What symptoms did Mikayla have?
The first time Mikayla experienced “random” stomach pain was in the middle of last year.
“I felt constipated and had cramping in my stomach but the next day I was fine,” she said.
Two months later, the pain returned.
She visited her GP “just in case”, but was reassured there was nothing serious.
“I’m in my head just assuming that it was due to poor eating or not drinking enough water,” she said.
From October, the symptoms kept returning.
At different times, she was told it was food intolerance, gastroenteritis, or simply overdoing it, while she wondered whether it could be related to her menstrual cycle.
Then, in late February and early March, a new pain developed around her pelvis and pubic bone, making her think she had a urinary tract infection (UTI).
“I had [heard of ovarian cancer], but you just don’t think these things will ever happen to you,” Mikayla told Yahoo Lifestyle.
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In the first week of March, Mikayla and her partner Joe travelled to Fiji to celebrate their 10-year anniversary.
What started as a relaxing holiday quickly changed.
“I went and bought cough lollies and gargled salt water for a quick remedy. On Saturday, we left to fly back to Melbourne, and I was really unwell,” Mikayla said.
“We had breakfast and I couldn’t really eat. I was hot and clammy, then I was freezing, so I took some Panadol.”
After arriving home, she tested positive for Covid.
But while the virus eased within a week, the diarrhoea returned more aggressively than ever.
“I felt crap, my stomach’s hurting, the doctor said it was just gastro, then I started feeling nauseous. I called a nurse on call at 7pm who encouraged me to go to the hospital the next day if it gets worse,” she said.
“I hadn’t slept, and my stomach was so round that I thought I was gassy or bloated.”
By the following morning, the pain had become unbearable and Joe rushed her to hospital.
A gynecologist later confirmed the worst: she had ovarian cancer.
(Supplied)A shocking diagnosis
Mikayla arrived exhausted, in severe pain and constantly running to the toilet.
After nurses noticed her heart rate was dangerously high, doctors deemed her “critically unwell”.
Blood tests couldn’t explain what was wrong, so doctors ordered a CT scan.
Hours later, a doctor returned with the results.
“She closed the curtain, and in my head I just knew something wasn’t right. But I thought it would be appendicitis or gallstones,” Mikayla said.
“She said, ‘We’ve found a large mass in your abdomen, but it’s something we can treat’.
“She left the room, and Joe and I were just looking at each other, processing what she said. Neither of us knew what to say.”
A nurse comforted Mikayla as she began to cry before a gynaecologist confirmed she had ovarian cancer.
“When she told me that I had cancer, I think for me it all made sense because I was in limbo for so long,” she said.
Doctors later confirmed the tumour measured 23 centimetres.
Mikayla hopes sharing her story will help spread awareness of the signs of ovarian cancer.
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Although the cancer was stage four and there was no family history of ovarian cancer, it responded well to treatment.
Mikayla began chemotherapy on April 2 and completed treatment on June 15 after several 21-day cycles.
One of the hardest parts of the experience was losing her hair.
“At the start, doctors had good news and bad news – the good being that the cancer is highly treatable, but the bad news being that I’ll lose all my hair and my fertility may be affected,” she said.
“The hair aspect was hard but if it means I’ll survive, that’s the main thing.”
‘Early detection saves lives’: Aussies warned no one is ‘too healthy’ for cancer
Now, she’s sharing her story to encourage others to trust their instincts if something doesn’t feel right.
Looking back, she can see the bowel changes, pelvic pain and frequent urge to urinate were classic symptoms of ovarian cancer, but they were repeatedly attributed to constipation, gastro, food intolerance, Covid or muscle strain.
She hopes other Australians, particularly young women who assume they’re “too healthy” for a serious illness, continue seeking answers if symptoms persist or don’t add up.
For Mikayla, the term “silent killer” reflects just how vague the warning signs can be and how easily they’re normalised by both patients and healthcare professionals.
“Early detection saves lives,” she said.
“If something feels wrong, keep going back, keep asking questions, and get it checked — whether it’s ovarian cancer or anything else.”
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