Graduate dies of cancer at 25 after her GP kept saying no to smear test
A GRADUATE who died after being diagnosed with cervical cancer at the age of 21 begged NHS doctors for a smear test but was told she was too young.
Amber Cliff’s family said she visited local doctors up to 20 times over three years to request a test after complaining of sickness and severe bleeding.
But she was told she could not have one because it is only offered on the NHS to women over the age of 25, her family claim.
Eventually Miss Cliff had a test at a private clinic – only to be told she had been suffering from cervical cancer for up to four years.
The housing officer continued to live an ‘exciting’ life as she underwent treatment, but died on Sunday at the age of 25 from cervical and lung cancer.
Now her brother Josh, 27, has launched a campaign for an ‘Amber’s Law’ to allow young women to be tested on the NHS.
He said: ‘If Amber had a smear test sooner then the cancer might have been caught in time, and we wouldn’t have lost her like this.
‘She asked for smear tests multiple times, but was told that she couldn’t have one because she was too young.
‘We decided to get her one privately to put her mind at ease – but when we got the results it did the opposite.’
Miss Cliff, a former Sunderland University business student, battled the disease for four years after her diagnosis, receiving two rounds of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. But the treatment failed, and the cancer spread to her lungs and throat.
Mr Cliff, an electrician, added: ‘While she was undergoing treatment she didn’t tell anyone because she didn’t want loads of people giving her sympathy.
‘She just carried on and she lived quite an exciting life. She never wanted to show anything was wrong – but the cancer spread like wildfire through her body.’ Mr Cliff said his sister, from Sunderland, had begun exhibiting worrying symptoms from the age of 18 and went to her GP on several occasions.
He said that instead of offering her a test, NHS doctors told Miss Cliff that her symptoms were due to the pill, her hormones or a urinary tract infection.
After Miss Cliff’s death, Mr Cliff and his family decided to start an online petition calling for women aged between 18-25 to be given the option of having a smear test if they have visited their GP twice with similar gynaecological complaints.
Although they have already gathered
‘They said she was too young’
43,000 signatures, the family still needs 100,000 in total before ‘Amber’s Law’ can be considered in Parliament.
Josh added: ‘I know that people have tried countless times to get the smear test age legally lowered to 18, but Amber’s Law is different.
‘Amber’s Law applies to women under the age of 25. It gives them the option to have a screening if they request it, but it doesn’t make testing obligatory.’
Routine smears used to be offered to women aged 20 and over, but it was raised to 25 in 2006 because there were so few cases.
But the death of Jade Goody from cervical cancer aged 27 in 2009 led to calls to lower the screening age again.
The test involves removing cells from the cervix and examining them for abnormalities. A positive result will prompt another examination to confirm a cancer diagnosis.
A spokesman for Public Health England in the North East said: ‘The routine cervical screening programme is for women who, at the time of taking the test, are not known to have any cervical cancer related symptoms.’
Robert Music, chief executive of Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust said: ‘ For women under 25 who present with symptoms such as abnormal bleeding, the most common symptom of cervical cancer, there is an NHS pathway for GPs to follow which aims to result in a faster route to diagnosis.
‘It is vital that women are aware of the symptoms for cervical cancer and go to their GP if they are concerned.’