A NURSE discovered she had cancer after getting lip filler.

Edita Jucaite, 36, had similar procedures before without any reaction but an injection last April immediately left her swollen with severe bruising.

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The doctor who administered it – who was also a colleague – said she should contact her GP.

She had also been losing weight and just a few hours after the appointment where Edita had a blood test, the surgery called her.

They said she needed to go straight to hospital as they suspected she had leukaemia.

Further tests confirmed that Edita had chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) – a type of cancer that affects the bone marrow and white blood cells.

She began having oral chemotherapy and is now in remission.

However, she will be on medication for life to help prevent the disease from returning.

Edita, from Banbury, Oxfordshire, said: “Not many people can say that lip fillers saved their life – but I can.

“If the bruising hadn’t happened and I hadn’t been encouraged to see the GP because of it then I may well have put it off again and again, which could have then meant the leukaemia may have progressed and been much harder to treat.

“I had no idea about the signs and symptoms of leukaemia.

“I was happy to be losing a bit of weight as I was about to go on holiday and I drank a lot of energy drinks which may have disguised my tiredness.

“There definitely needs to be more general awareness of leukaemia and what to look out for so more people can be diagnosed in time for treatment to be effective, like I was.”

Only 14 per cent of Brits are able to identify the four main symptoms of blood cancer, according to a new poll by Leukaemia Care and Leukaemia UK.

These are unusual bruising, unusual bleeding, fatigue, and repeated infections.

The organisations say this lack of awareness is contributing to more than a third of those with the condition finding out in A&E.

Around 10,000 people are diagnosed with leukaemia every year in the UK. Almost 5,000 lose their lives.

Annually, 37 per cent of those diagnosed with leukaemia receive this news in emergency settings – more than any other cancer type.

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A MUM felt her “soul leave her body” as she was told of her unborn baby’s devastating diagnosis.

Madysen Wilcox experienced spotting when she was six weeks along, with doctors initially fearing she’d had a miscarriage.

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Just a few weeks later, the 29-year-old mum was “blindsided” by a another devastating blow.

Madysen her husband, Darin, 34, were left dumbstruck when they were told that their baby’s brain had failed to form properly.

The mum-of-two, from Smithfield, Utah, USA, was so shocked by the diagnosis that she felt like she was undergoing an out-of-body experience.

She said: “Looking back on the day when we got the diagnosis, it felt like my soul left my body and I was watching myself react to the news.

“The ultrasound tech was very quiet for what felt like forever as she was looking at Charlie’s brain and heart.

“She then left to go get the doctor and he came in and told us the diagnosis.

“As soon as I heard it, it was at that moment, my soul left my body.

“The doctor told us the news, that his brain never formed into two hemispheres and his heart had some major defects as well. And that the diagnosis was fatal.”

Her unborn son, named Charlie, was diagnosed with Alobar Holoprosencephaly, a birth defect that means a baby’s brain doesn’t form properly or separate into right and left hemispheres.

The brain is normally divided into two halves, but they remain in contact and communication through nerve fibres.

The division allows the brain to process several pieces of information and perform several actions at once.

When your brain doesn’t divide properly in development, as in Holoprosencephaly, it causes several physical and neurological issues.

The condition is estimated to affect every one in 7,500 births, according to the NHS.

Many babies with the condition don’t survive full term.

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Madysen and Darin were faced with an “impossible decision” as they were offered two options by doctors: either to terminate the pregnancy or to see it through.

After continuously switching between the two options, the couple at first decided to terminate the pregnancy immediately as they didn’t want their unborn son to suffer any longer.

But Madysen and her husband – who are devout Christians – soon felt this wasn’t the right decision for them.

The mum chose to carry baby Charlie to term, saying the decision helped bring the family closer together.

Madysen already share two children together, Hayvn, six, and Harvey, three. They aren’t sure how long Charlie will survive once he’s born.

Reflecting on her ordeal, Madysen explained: “We had been trying to get pregnant for almost a year and we finally found out we were pregnant in February 2024.

“We started to have some complications when I was about six weeks pregnant.

“I started having some spotting and bleeding and the doctors initially suspected a miscarriage.

“My whole world felt like it was crashing down, and I was suffocating.

“It was all hitting me that we had just been told our baby will not survive.

“We went into that appointment suspecting Down Syndrome, not a fatal diagnosis.

“It was the last thing we ever expected to hear. The rest of that day, I just couldn’t stop crying, the tears felt like they would never stop.”

Madysen said that carrying Charlie full term had brought her and Darin closer together and helped her connect with other mums going through similar situations.

“Looking back, I can clearly see God’s hand in our lives and how he nudged us along to make the best decision for our family.

“Carrying Charlie has blessed me in more ways than I can count.

“He has brought me and Darin closer as a couple, he has brought us closer as a family.

“He’s also helped me connect with so many other wonderful mums who have been through something similar.”

But the mum still describes her pregnancy with Charlie as a “roller-coaster”.

Madysen said: “The roller coaster of emotions throughout this process has been exhausting.

“Prior to finding out Charlie’s official diagnosis, there were days where doctors told us things looked great and that everything was fine, then there were days where they were very concerned and we had to anxiously wait for test results, not knowing anything, and anticipating the worst.”

The mum is preparing herself for the agonising possibility of having to say goodbye to Charlie soon after he is born.

“Since his diagnosis is so rare, everything is a case-by-case scenario.

“So, we really have no idea how long he will live. We have had to prepare ourselves for every outcome basically.

“The hardest part with that is knowing we could meet him and immediately have to say goodbye.

“I was pregnant at the same time as two of my best friends this year and seeing them take home their healthy babies has been excruciating.”

A MUM’s bid to get rid of her eye bags for her 50th birthday backfired – when a “botched” op in Turkey left her with DROOPING eyelids like a basset hound.

Anita Brawders decided to treat herself for her major milestone last year and booked a surgery to have her lower eye bags removed in Turkey.

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The now 51-year-old paid €1,000 for the operation in which surgeons made a small incision under the eye and pulled the skin up.

However, within days of arriving back home, Anita noticed the area below her eyes was beginning to droop – exposing her lower eyelid.

The bar manager returned to Turkey for revision surgery but claims the lower lids dropped once again within a matter of days.

Devastated, the mum-of-three said she looked “disfigured” – and missed out on family events, as well as her 50th, due to her “botched” appearance.

The mum-of-three has since had another revision surgery in Canada that was successful – but caims she’s spent more than €10,000 on operations, flights, and time off work.

Now, the mum, who lives in Kilkenny, Ireland, wants to warn others against travelling to Turkey for surgery.

Anita said: “About three months after having my upper eyelid surgery in Lithuania, I started noticing my eyebags.

“I was coming up to 50 and just wanted to feel better about myself. It was a little 50th birthday present to myself.

“I started researching about six months beforehand and this clinic came up in Turkey. Everything looked good with the clinic.

“After coming back home, it just didn’t seem right. It wasn’t healing. I took the plasters off and it didn’t look right.

“I started texting my co-ordinator and they said it was just part of the healing process.

“Then about three weeks after my surgery, they decided to bring me back and reassured me they could fix what had happened.”

Anita opted to go under the knife again in Turkey to help fix her right eye but within four days of arriving home, the skin dropped.

‘Ruined my 50th’

Anita said: “It was devastating. I could see no end to it. I lived with this for a year.

“I missed out on a lot because of it. I didn’t have my planned party as I was supposed to.

“I had weddings that I missed out on. My family were shocked. I felt disfigured and I looked disfigured.

“I felt like I had been botched. It ruined my 50th.

“I had no self-esteem. I wouldn’t go anywhere but working at my own bar. I felt like I couldn’t go out.

“I hated looking at myself in the mirror. You can’t hide it, it’s the first thing you see. I didn’t want to live like that for the rest of my life.”

After a year of living with her ‘botched’ eye, Anita underwent revision surgery in Canada in August to help prevent the skin from dropping again.

I regret going to Turkey about my surgery. You’re signing things in Turkey, you have no idea what you’re signing. It’s dangerous.

Anita Brawders

Anita said: “It looks amazing compared to what it did look like. It changed my life.

“I’m in the healing process at the moment. I’m doing well, I’m not sure if I have to go back for another procedure. He saved my life.”

Anita claims the clinic offered her €2,400 in compensation after the operation – which she described as “an insult”.

Anita said: “It was an insult what they offered. That’s not going to cover half my costs.

“I spent money on flights, wages, my business, taking time out of work – it didn’t near cover my cost.

‘Feel so let down’

“The surgeon never took responsibility for his actions. They told me every procedure is a risk and you’ve signed your paperwork.

“I haven’t heard back from them since. I feel so let down. I don’t want them to do this to anyone else.

“I regret going to Turkey about my surgery.

“You’re signing things in Turkey, you have no idea what you’re signing. It’s dangerous.”