A young mum has been diagnosed with terminal cancer after suffering from back pain and severe headaches.
Mazeda Aktar, known by her loved ones as Dina, pleaded with doctors on multiple occasions to take her symptoms seriously, but they were wrongly dismissed as ‘pregnancy symptoms’, she claimed on Sunday.
Mazeda was experiencing migraines and back and pelvic pain that was so grave, it left her unable to ‘sleep at night, bedridden and in a wheelchair’ as she approached her third trimester of pregnancy.
“The symptoms were so bad that I was at A&E every week or so throughout the pregnancy,” the mother-of-two recalled in her GoFundMe, which was set up with her brother Imad Uddin Ahmed.
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Staff at Queen’s Hospital, Romford, finally performed an MRI scan and ‘found a slight growth in the brain but didn’t know what it was,’ the young mother stated.
She also underwent a chest X-Ray and was ‘falsely given the all-clear’, Mazeda alleged.
Thankfully, Mazeda went on to safely deliver her baby - who is now eight weeks old - making her two-year-old son a big brother.
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But just two weeks after she underwent the C-section to deliver her youngest son, ‘further scans and tests revealed [the] extensive growth’ in Mazeda’s brain.
“These tests were only conducted due to the severe deterioration of my sight in both eyes,” Mazeda claimed.
Doctors at the hospital have since apologised to Mazeda and her family for making an ‘error’ in her results, MyLondon reported.
Tyla has contacted a representative of NHS England for a comment on the claims.
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Mazeda then underwent a full-body CT scan and a neck biopsy, where she was diagnosed with Stage Four inoperable Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (EGFR positive) on the 1st of November 2022.
The cancer has since spread to the young mother’s brain, behind her eyes, bones, back and ribs, as well as a potential lesion in her liver, she told supporters on the fundraising page.
Mazeda said: “My whole world came crashing down, I couldn’t even process the birth of my newborn and deal with postpartum.
“This has not only changed my life but my whole family’s world has also turned upside down and come to a standstill. It came as a massive shock for us all.”
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She went on to inform supporters that even though the condition is ‘generally associated with smokers’, Mazeda does not smoke herself.
The young woman has now tragically been moved to palliative care under the NHS as they are unable to ‘offer’ any further treatment, Mazeda explained - meaning that she would be tragically leaving behind her newborn baby and her toddler due to her terminal diagnosis.
“I’ve had ten sessions of radiotherapy to the brain to reduce the tumours, to the eyes to improve vision, and one session on my back to relieve pain,” Mazeda said.
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“I’ve also been prescribed Osimertinib - an oral pill - the first line of treatment for my type of cancer. This is the most the NHS can offer.”
Her treatment in the UK will not ‘cure’ her cancer, and will only manage her pain.
She tragically wrote: “I do not know how much time I have left. As a mother, I am determined to fight for my two babies.”
Mazeda’s supportive family are now seeking ‘the best medical treatment’ for their loved one in Japan, which could potentially save her life.
“Japan is one of the leading countries specialising in immunotherapies for cancer patients,” the family claim.
“With their advanced technology, they can provide a series of treatments, including dendritic cell therapy,” a vaccine which helps the immune system recognise and attack abnormal cells like cancer, according to Cancer Research UK.
“This treatment could save my life, but it is unavailable on the NHS.”
The family explained that they are hoping to raise £70,000 to cover the cost of the treatment, as well as the required scans, tests and therapies.
“With your aid in this fundraiser, I hope to be able to have the treatment I so desperately need over the next few months so I can have a chance to live and raise my two boys,” Mazeda said.
“I will be leaving my 8-week-old behind, and I am willing to bear that temporary separation from my baby boy if it means I can be there for him every day for the rest of his life.
“I thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my story. I want to be able to see my two boys grow up,” she pleaded.
At the time of writing, Mazeda has amazingly raised over £83,000 towards her potentially life-saving treatment.
To donate towards Mazeda receiving treatment in Japan, you can visit her GoFundMe here.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact Macmillan’s Cancer Support Line on 0808 808 00 00, 8am–8pm seven days a week.
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Gabriella Ferlita