{"id":441183,"date":"2026-05-23T05:59:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-23T05:59:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/441183\/"},"modified":"2026-05-23T05:59:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-23T05:59:12","slug":"kiwi-mum-on-missing-subtle-signs-of-ovarian-cancer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/441183\/","title":{"rendered":"Kiwi mum on missing subtle signs of ovarian cancer"},"content":{"rendered":"

Even when Laura\u2019s urine test initially suggested infection, the antibiotics were stopped when results came back clear. <\/p>\n

\u201cI was still going to work, exercising and trying to just get on with life.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"TheThe signs of Laura’s cancer were small. Photo \/ Michelle Cutelli<\/p>\n

Yet week by week, as her symptoms worsened, the nighttime discomfort Laura was feeling was becoming harder to ignore. <\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t until her regular GP returned \u201cand listened to everything\u201d that blood tests were ordered. <\/p>\n

\u201cWithin two days, I had results that completely changed my life. I remember my doctor saying, \u2018Laura, I\u2019m so sorry. You need to prepare for the worst.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

With her CA125 blood marker \u2013 a protein in the blood that may be elevated in women with ovarian cancer \u2013 extremely high, she discovered she had a tumour on her ovary<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Heartbreakingly, she had to process that initial diagnosis on the same day as her 10-year wedding anniversary. Together, Laura and Scott, 39, \u201cwent out to dinner that night like nothing had happened \u2013 but it had\u201d, she says softly.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t until later that evening reality finally hit. <\/p>\n

\"LauraLaura had to process that initial diagnosis on the same day as her 10-year wedding anniversary. Photo \/ Michelle Cutelli<\/p>\n

Laura shares, \u201cI cried for hours. All I could think about was my kids. I kept thinking, \u2018I won\u2019t see them grow up.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

However, as weeks passed in a blur of referrals and missed handovers, more questions than answers remained. The only confirmation Laura eventually got of her diagnosis of stage-four ovarian cancer was an email.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one actually told me,\u201d she says. \u201cI just read it.\u201d<\/p>\n

She then waited for an oncologist and scans that never appeared, and she started to realise she wasn\u2019t a priority. <\/p>\n

\u201cI felt like I was falling through the cracks,\u201d reflects Laura, who was wracked with pain by this stage.<\/p>\n

Although she had private health insurance, as Christmas approached, she was encouraged into the public system because the private hospital was closed. Still, little happened and eventually Laura took matters into her own hands, requesting a private referral. <\/p>\n

Within days, she had an oncologist, a treatment plan and began chemotherapy<\/a>. Yet despite the ovarian cancer diagnosis occurring in December, her treatment didn\u2019t start until February this year. <\/p>\n

Sadly, Laura\u2019s experience isn\u2019t isolated. In New Zealand, about 85% of women are not diagnosed with ovarian cancer until they are stage three or four. By stage four, the chances of survival drop dramatically.<\/p>\n

Having just finished her fourth round of chemo, Laura\u2019s now focusing only on the things she can control \u2013 herself and her family.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see chemo as something that\u2019s helping me,\u201d she tells. \u201cIt\u2019s fighting for me, but I know I need to look after myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Each day, she walks the farm tracks around Galatea. <\/p>\n

\"LifeLife for Laura is now about creating balance for her children \u2013 Cole, Bailey and Aria. Photo \/ Michelle Cutelli<\/p>\n

\u201cNature is my destresser,\u201d she explains. \u201cSome days are hard and some days are good, but I still go. My trainer kindly gave me a full year of training for free, so I\u2019ve been doing sessions with her too.\u201d<\/p>\n

For now, life is about creating balance for her children \u2013 Cole, nine, Bailey, seven, and four-year-old Aria \u2013 and finding ways to make it all feel less frightening.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re amazing,\u201d smiles Laura. \u201cThey just adapt. They want to be part of it all \u2013 even the hard bits.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking back at her journey, Laura says the best advice she can give anyone going through a cancer diagnosis is to advocate for yourself.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cChase everything \u2013 don\u2019t wait around!\u201d she warns. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been an emotional rollercoaster and I\u2019m still upset with the way the public health system continues to let me down. But I don\u2019t blame my medical centre \u2013 they\u2019ve become my rock. They send weekly emails checking in on me and the nurse does home visits to take my bloods, to ensure I\u2019m not exposed to any bugs while my immune system is at its weakest.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Laura hasn\u2019t been given a prognosis, her family is praying for the best. <\/p>\n

She enthuses, \u201cI want to be around for them as long as I can.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Even when Laura\u2019s urine test initially suggested infection, the antibiotics were stopped when results came back clear. \u201cI…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":441184,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[7800,2534,25819,9828,6097,2109,3233,15313,18361,42,10109,225220,1899,194,6451,17211,424,6501,2721,43,12909,1118,90,70399,1562,8139,31906,180,5652,154297,165,1529,40,38,41,39,102,4576],"class_list":["post-441183","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-body","tag-cancer","tag-deep","tag-different","tag-down","tag-family","tag-farm","tag-feeling","tag-graham","tag-headlines","tag-husband","tag-juggled","tag-kids","tag-kiwi","tag-knew","tag-laura","tag-life","tag-missing","tag-mum","tag-news","tag-normal","tag-of","tag-on","tag-ovarian","tag-plenty","tag-scott","tag-seemed","tag-shares","tag-signs","tag-subtle","tag-their","tag-three","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-with","tag-work"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/441183","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=441183"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/441183\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/441184"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=441183"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=441183"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=441183"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}