The brave mum-of-two is having surgery later this year
Tanya Sanderson was diagnosed with cancer in April
An NHS hero is now fighting her own health battle – after being struck down with a rare cancer. Tanya Sanderson was diagnosed with pleomorphic liposarcoma in April.
The mental health nurse’s ordeal began when she noticed a ‘small lump’ on the back of her left thigh in 2023. Mum-of-two Tanya initially thought it was nothing to worry about, until her leg began to hurt in January.
A visit to the Royal Stoke University Hospital and a follow-up appointment at the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital in Birmingham soon confirmed the worst. Now she is warning others to be vigilant of the symptoms.
The 41-year-old, of Trentham, said: “Honestly, I thought the lump was just some kind of muscle. I just assumed I’d done too much in the gym or that maybe it was from riding the clutch in my car. I kept joking about it for ages, asking people to touch it.
“But after about 18 months, it started to hurt. It felt like I had a bit of sciatica or something. My leg started to go numb. Then I noticed I was feeling physically unwell: I was having brain fog and extreme fatigue and the lump was getting bigger.
“Eventually I went to get it seen in February. They scheduled me to have an MRI. That’s when I found out I had this extremely rare cancer. They say that most GPs will only come across one case across their entire career.”
Tanya says the horrific revelation filled her with ‘dread’.
She explained: “I was shocked when I found out. I really didn’t think it was cancer. It was even more shocking when they explained it to me. My cancer normally affects older men. So because I’m a younger woman who’s always kept fit and healthy, never drank or smoked, it just boggled my mind.
“I was terrified at first. Because the lump had been there for so long, I assumed the worst. With cancer, you have much better chances if you catch it early. And I have the most aggressive liposarcoma there is. But, fortunately, my CT scan results showed it hadn’t spread anywhere. I thought it was too late.”
Tanya Sanderson is due to have surgery on her leg
Tanya has had radiotherapy at the Royal Stoke, with surgery scheduled for later in the year.
Tanya added: “I’m worried that they might have to amputate my leg. If they can’t remove all the tumour because of how it has grown, it could be the only option. I know that it has gone behind my knee, where it’s touching the nerves and the blood vessels. But apart from that, I’m feeling positive.
“I’m going to need lots of physiotherapy after it’s done. They’ll have to take a big chunk of my leg muscle out. I’ll probably be left on crutches for a long time. I’m prepared for it though. I’ve gone past being scared and crying.
“I’m looking forward to getting this out of the way. Right now, I can’t do a lot of the things I enjoy doing. I love swimming, I love body pump, and I love going on walks with my family. But at the minute, I keep falling over and losing feeling in my leg. So those parts of my life are on hold.”
Friend Caroline Jones – a former NHS colleague – has kick-started a fundraiser to help Tanya make a more comfortable recovery.
Caroline added: “She’s a very private person and she doesn’t like to share these things, but someone blurted out that she was on an oncology appointment. I reached out and asked her what was going on. Because I’ve been through cancer myself – I know how it feels.
“I know the stress of facing the condition as a single parent. Trying to keep everything together. That’s why I decided to start this fundraiser. I want to get a bit together that can provide her with some peace of mind for a few months while she just focuses on her recovery. Hopefully we can get her a mobility car too.”
You can support Tanya by visiting Caroline’s GoFundMe page, here.
Get daily headlines and breaking news emailed to you – it’s FREE