![\"Sumbul](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEC_291914967-0326.jpg\")
\n\t\tSumbul Ari says she was failed countless times (Picture: Sumbul Ari\/Cover Images)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tSumbul Ari says she was failed countless times (Picture: Sumbul Ari\/Cover Images)<\/p>\n
For 11 long months, Sumbul\u00a0Ari faced incessant itching, extreme fatigue, and intense night sweats<\/a>. But each and every time she visited the GP\u2019s surgery, she was told there was nothing wrong<\/a>.<\/p>\n It started with the scratching<\/a>, and the itchy sensation<\/a> steadily became so intense that she\u2019d sit there, day and night, in pain. It was April 2025.<\/p>\n The 26-year-old, who lives in Cairns in Queensland, Australia<\/a>, says: \u2018I\u2019d be scratching myself with sharp objects until I bled.\u2019<\/p>\n Next came the fluctuations in her body temperature, which again, she initially brushed off. After she thought her air-conditioning was broken, she even moved rooms, but still, nothing changed.<\/p>\n \u2018I\u2019d wake up to blood on my sheets from scratching so much in my sleep. My feet were the worst, but it was all over my body,\u2019 she says.<\/p>\n As time went on, a new collection of symptoms popped up: she lost her energy, and then her appetite went, too. Infections would come back again and again, and she had an unabating cough.<\/p>\n \t\t Sumbul says that, time and time again, her concerns were dismissed by medical professionals. <\/p>\n \u2018He told me to moisturise\u2019<\/p>\n The first time she went to her doctor, specifically for the itching, she was simply told to adjust her skin care routine.<\/p>\n The event content creator shares: \u2018He told me to moisturise because we live in a hot, humid climate. He said it was just dry skin.\u2019<\/p>\n When she went back a second time, a different doctor treated her for a yeast infection. Then, when the itching persisted, she was diagnosed with scabies<\/a>. Next, it was supposedly eczema<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u2018I knew deep down it wasn\u2019t a skin issue, it felt systemic,\u2019 she says.<\/p>\n \u2018I did multiple stool and blood tests, [and] everything came back normal, except I was borderline anaemic. And I was dismissed again.\u2019<\/p>\n \t\t In the depths of her desperation, she turned to alternative treatments, paying for a parasite cleanse and visiting a naturopath. And while she says the herbal treatment momentarily eased her symptoms ever so slightly, the relief was only temporary.<\/p>\n She says: \u2018The itching dropped from a 10 out of 10 to a 2, for about three weeks. Then it came back even worse.\u2019<\/p>\n Finally, another doctor suggested to Sumbul that she visit a skin specialist, and at this point, she \u2018gave up on the medical system.\u2019<\/p>\n The moment everything changed<\/p>\n But a watershed moment came when she discovered a lump on her neck.<\/p>\n \u2018I googled \u201clump on neck\u201d, and lymphoma\u00a0came up. I read the symptoms, and I just thought, \u201cOh my gosh, I think I have cancer<\/a>,\u201d\u2018 Sumbul says.<\/p>\n The next day, she rushed to the doctor. Bursting into tears, she pleaded with them to take her seriously.<\/p>\n Examining her, this time, medical professionals found multiple swollen lymph nodes<\/a> and referred her for an urgent ultrasound.<\/p>\n Within a few short hours, her life would change forever. Once the scan results came through, showing abnormal and enlarged lymph nodes, she was sent straight to the emergency department.<\/p>\n Here, doctors found lymph nodes on her chest, neck, and spleen, and less than a week later, she underwent more tests: a biopsy, a PET scan, and then, finally, a heart scan.<\/p>\n Then, on March 17, 2026, she was diagnosed with Stage 2-3 Hodgkin\u2019s lymphoma, almost a year after her symptoms first started.<\/p>\n \t\t Her initial reaction wasn\u2019t fear: instead, relief that she finally had the answers she\u2019d been searching for.<\/p>\n \u2018I didn\u2019t have to itch myself to death anymore,\u2019 she says.<\/p>\n But amid the reassurance, anger started to bubble to the surface. For months, she felt she\u2019d been dismissed by doctors. Now, she describes being \u2018unheard\u2019 as the very \u2018worst feeling.\u2019<\/p>\n Since she started chemotherapy, her symptoms have improved dramatically. After her first treatment, the itching completely stopped, and she got a full night\u2019s rest for the first time in months.<\/p>\n Looking to the future, she knows navigating her diagnosis won\u2019t be easy. But amid all the emotions, she feels hopeful.<\/p>\n She concludes: \u2018Knowing I\u2019m on the right path to becoming a normal functioning human again makes me very happy.<\/p>\n \u2018I want to complete a full Ironman before I\u2019m 30. This is just a minor setback for a major comeback.<\/p>\n \u2018Life is too short to sweat the small stuff. Tomorrow isn\u2019t guaranteed, so just take it one day at a time.\u2019<\/p>\n Do you have a story to share?<\/p>\n Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@Metro.co.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n Arrow Arrow Arrow![\"Sumbul](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEI_291872945-7cb8.jpg\")
\n\t\tShe spent 11 months battling relentless symptoms (Picture: @\u200csumbul.ari\/Cover Images)<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEI_291872929-0bda-e1775289491580.jpg\")
\n\t\tShe first noticed something was wrong in April 2025 (Picture: @\u200csumbul.ari\/Cover Images)<\/p>\n![\"Sumbul](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEI_291872805-ec7f.jpg\")
\n\t\tSumbul works with brands and captures weddings (Picture: @\u200csumbul.ari\/Cover Images)
\n\u2018I didn\u2019t have to itch myself to death anymore\u2019<\/p>\n
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