ASHLEY Robinson blamed his stomach issues on wedding stress – just weeks before discovering he had stage four bowel cancer.
“The wedding was so consuming and I was being told by every health professional that I didn’t have cancer,” the now 35-year-old chef said.
“They were saying ‘you’re fine, don’t worry, go and get married’ so I took their word for it.”
It was May 2024 when Ashely, from Dacorum, Hertfordshire started to experience symptoms.
“I started passing quite a lot of blood when I was going for a number two,” he explained
In June, as his symptoms worsened, Ashley called his GP, who reassured him it “wasn’t serious” and would likely “pass in a week or so”.
“Personally, I thought it was stress-related because it had come on rapidly while we were getting stuff ready for the wedding,” he said.
“We were planning on a ‘princess wedding’ but we were working very, very hard for it and I was working a minimum of 60 hours per week.”
Ashley now believes if he didn’t have the wedding he probably would have taken it more seriously.
He said: “It got really bad and I passed the most insane amount of blood so I phoned my GP and they told me to go to A&E straight away.
“When I saw the doctor I mentioned to him that my great nan had died of colon cancer but he said there was no chance and that I was too young.
“I went home with medication and took that for two weeks but nothing changed.”
Ashley had his stag do coming up in July, so tried to push his worries to the back of his mind.
Ashley and Jasmin, who met through a mutual friend at the gym in 2019, got married at Pendley Manor, Hertfordshire, on July 20, 2024.
In the weeks after tying the knot, Ashley started experiencing rapid weight loss, shedding a staggering 12kg in just seven days.
He claims he repeatedly tried to get another appointment at his GP but they dismissed his symptoms as piles until Jasmin “stormed in” demanding he be seen.
“They got me in but my GP said they still didn’t think I had cancer, but they put me forward for a colonoscopy,” he explained.
“That’s when they found a tumour the size of an orange in my colon.”
Ashely was “dreading” getting the biopsy results back.
“I was told I had stage 4 colon [bowel] cancer, which had spread to my liver. It was the worst news possible,” he said.
“It’s so hard to put into words the hammer blow, it absolutely crushed my wife,” he added.
“Aside from it happening to her, it was the worst possible news I ever could have had.”
Earth-shattering news’
Ashley started a course of immunotherapy treatment shortly afterwards and says even his oncologist was stunned to see the results.
However, he says he feels frustrated that the cancer was missed by doctors and is urging anyone who experiences worrying symptoms to visit their GP.
He said: “I couldn’t believe it. I never thought they were going to say that it had shrunk by 90 per cent, it was incredible.
“Even my oncologist was stunned, she was over the moon.
“But if they’d found it in May then they might have been able to give me a treatment before it had spread to my liver.
“At the time it was obviously earth-shattering news, and I couldn’t contemplate what was going on but now that I’m on the mend, it’s very frustrating.
“I was 34 at the time so I know when something’s not right, you know your own body.
“When I rang the GP, I thought they would have made more of a thing of it but it just seemed like they didn’t want to know.”
Ashley is still having immunotherapy treatment and hopes to continue seeing positive results at his regular check-ups.
Seek advice
A spokesperson for Hertfordshire and West Essex Integrated Care Board said: “People are often the best judge of what’s ‘normal’ for their bodies.
“NHS advice is always to encourage anyone with worrying symptoms to seek advice and to ask again if they are still worried.
“If patients are concerned or unhappy about the care they receive from their GP practice, we encourage them to first of all contact their practice’s patient services team.
“If they feel that the practice hasn’t resolved their concerns, they can then get in touch with the integrated care board’s patient experience team who will discuss the options open to them.
“We have not previously been made aware of this case but can follow it up on the patient’s behalf if they contact us and give their permission for us to do this.”
A spokesperson for Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust said: “We aim to provide outstanding care to all our patients and we are very sorry for what has happened to Mr Robinson.
“We would encourage him to contact the Trust directly to discuss any concerns he has with the treatment he received.
“Our thoughts are with Mr Robinson and his family at this difficult time.”
What are the red flag warning signs of bowel cancer?
IT'S the fourth most common cancer in the UK, the second deadliest - yet bowel cancer can be cured, if you catch it early enough.
While screening is one way of ensuring early diagnosis, there are things everyone can do to reduce their risk of the deadly disease.
Being aware of the signs and symptoms of bowel cancer, spotting any changes and checking with your GP can prove a life-saver.
If you notice any of the signs, don’t be embarrassed and don’t ignore them. Doctors are used to seeing lots of patients with bowel problems.
The five red-flag symptoms of bowel cancer include:
- Bleeding from the back passage, or blood in your poo
- A change in your normal toilet habits – going more frequently for example
- Pain or a lump in your tummy
- Extreme tiredness
- Losing weight
Tumours in the bowel typically bleed, which can cause a shortage of red blood cells, known as anaemia. It can cause tiredness and sometimes breathlessness.
In some cases bowel cancer can block the bowel, this is known as a bowel obstruction.
Other signs include:
- Gripping pains in the abdomen
- Feeling bloated
- Constipation and being unable to pass wind
- Being sick
- Feeling like you need to strain – like doing a number two – but after you’ve been to the loo
While these are all signs to watch out for, experts warn the most serious is noticing blood in your stools.
But, they warn it can prove tricky for doctors to diagnose the disease, because in most cases these symptoms will be a sign of a less serious disease.
