I found out I had a tumour after eight-month wait
SAM Ransom put off having her smear test because she could not get an appointment at the evenings or weekends.
She was working long hours as a PA and unwilling to take time off – and explain the reason to her male bosses.
The NHS sent her an invitation letter shortly after her 25th birthday in November 2009, but she waited eight months before going for an appointment. When the results came back they showed she had a fast-growing tumour and was also four months pregnant.
Miss Ransom was advised to have an abortion as the pregnancy would drastically reduce her survival chances. Tragically, the radiotherapy and chemotherapy left her infertile.
Now 34, she is engaged and living in Lordswood, near Chatham, Kent. She said: ‘I put it off due to work commitments and doctors only being open at certain times during the day.’