To mark Cervical Cancer Prevention Week (from 21st to 28th January) Vikki Ellis, 35, has courageously spoken out about being diagnosed with cervical cancer at the tender age of 25.
After beginning to suffer from symptoms including lower back and pelvic pain over a decade ago, Vikki struggled to understood the cause of her problems. "I hadn’t heard of cervical cancer until I was watching Big Brother and Jade Goody was pulled off.
But when a few years later I started experiencing symptoms, I still didn’t have any information.There was nothing online like there is today.The information out there was almost nonexistent to me," she revealed, the Mirror reports.
Having developed these worrying signs at just 23, Vikki tried her best to find answers - something which proved difficult. Although there around 3,300 new cases of cervical cancer diagnosed in the UK annually, Vikki discovered that securing a diagnosis wasn't easy, especially given her young age. "I went to the doctors and I got palmed off with the fact that I was too young to have a smear.