Jenny Osborne had been “fit and healthy” until she collapsed at home one day
Jenny Osborne had a rare form of cancer which has no symptoms in the early stages(Image: Jenny Osborne)
A “fit and healthy” mum had no idea she was suffering from a rare form of cancer – until she collapsed “vomiting blood”. Jenny Osborne, from Warrington, had no symptoms at all before she passed out in the doorway of her home in 2018.
Little did she know she had a rare gastrointestinal stromal tumour (GIST), a type of cancer which has no symptoms in the early stages – meaning most patients are not diagnosed until the disease has spread. Jenny, 52, said: “Back in 2018 I was very fit and healthy, and I just collapsed, vomiting blood. I just got up in the morning to let the dog out and collapsed by the back door.
“I took myself to Warrington A&E and they diagnosed me with this GIST in my stomach, which had ruptured. I had numerous blood transfusions until the Royal Liverpool Hospital would take me, and a surgeon there cut the GIST out, along with half my stomach, and I was told at that time I had a 96% of leading a normal life.”
The mum-of-one was given a three-year follow-up appointment in 2021 – but due to Covid-19 lockdowns, no scan was taken.
Then in 2023 she began to experience unusual bloating – which she put down to her age. She said: “Having just hit 50 I was putting it down to the menopause. I contacted the doctor to talk about the menopause and obviously nothing came of it. It was only when a friend said ‘with your history you should get that checked out’. The moment you use the ‘C word’ they get you in.”
A hospital scan revealed Jenny’s worst fears: the cancer had returned, and spread to her liver and lungs. It was also discovered she was suffering from a rare mutation of the disease – one that is resistant to most forms of GIST treatments.
She said: “I’ve gone through the rainbow of drugs available and about a month ago they gave me the last drug and said ‘that’s the only one we have left, and if it doesn’t work you’ve only got a few months left’. Obviously I was devastated.
“I burst out crying and said ‘can I leave?’. I walked out of my appointment and the next day I asked myself what we could do. When you’ve got a child that’s everything. She is incredibly brave. She has sort of put her life on hold for me and she shouldn’t have to do that. But she has been very strong for me.”
Jenny and her daughter Jess(Image: Jenny Osborne)
She was made aware of an approved drug called Avapritinib, a medication specifically intended for GIST cancer patients with her rare mutation. But the drug is not routinely available on the NHS.
Jenny said: “I asked my oncologist numerous times and each time it’s a no. He has tried, he’s contacted various cancer charities. But it’s very expensive.
“After the devastating news was given, I asked what if we fund it ourselves, and that’s what we are doing. It isn’t cheap. £17,000 has allowed me to buy the first month. I’ve got friends rallying round.”
An online fund-raiser set up by Jenny’s daughter, 19-year-old Jess, has already raised more than £17,700. Further funds have been raised by her friends, Tracey Brown and Debbie Guy, who took part in a charity abseil down Anfield Stadium.
Jenny said: “The money that has been raised is purely from putting it out on social media and it has just gotten bigger and bigger. I even had an anonymous donation from Canada. It’s incredible how news travels just by word of mouth and people passing it on.
“I did Slimming World for 13 years I’ve had a lot of people come in and out my door, and they have been very generous and shared it with friends and family. I’ve been very lucky, because I appreciate not everybody is in this position.
“I have to remain optimistic it’s going to work. I’m very humbled by all the support I’m getting from everybody. I have my down days where I don’t feel hopeful, but most days I try to stay positive about it.
“My daughter keeps me going. She’s just amazing. She such a strong independent woman. She’s 20 in November and I don’t feel I’ve done a bad job considering I’ve raised her on my own. She’s kind and caring and thoughtful and I’ve always told her treat others how you’d like to be treated and she’s always stuck by that.
“When I told her I only had a few months left, we both cried it out, and then she said ‘I still have hope’. It was her who snapped me out of it.”