A young mom has shared the four subtle things she ignored that turned out to be terminal breast cancer.
In October 2022, Kristi Halpin welcomed her first and only child Caiden to the world and, like many other new parents, she thought what was happening to her body was normal for the 'postpartum phase'.
She thought she was simply just run down because her life had drastically changed.
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Weight loss
In the weeks and months that followed her symptoms worsened, and by the start of summer last year, she noticed she had began losing weight without trying to - which was the first sign.
Naturally, as a first time mom she thought she was just shedding the baby weight faster than usual.
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According to Cancer Research UK, 'some people may lose weight despite eating normally. This is called cachexia (pronounced kak-ex-ee-a). With cachexia, your body may not be absorbing all the fat, protein and carbohydrate from the food you eat. And you may be burning calories faster than normal'.
Fatigue
The second indicator she ignored because she had just birthed her son was fatigue. Again, if you hadn't given birth before you'd assume it's because you're on your toes trying to look after your innocent newborn.
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In the early stages of parenthood, moms and dads will wake up frequently in the middle of the night to feed their infants, so she believed that was why she had chronic fatigue.
John Hopkins Medicine writes: "Extreme fatigue that doesn't get better with rest can be an early sign of cancer. Cancer uses your body's nutrients to grow and advance, so those nutrients are no longer replenishing your body. This 'nutrient theft' can make you feel extremely tired."
Bruising
The next is a bit odd, Halpin began noticing random bruises were popping up on her but she put it down to her clumsy dogs knocking into her.
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Qualifying why those with cancer might see bruises that pop up seemingly out of nowhere, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center explained: "These bruises are different from the ones we’re used to seeing: they might be much darker red or purple and could be irregularly shaped.
"Bruises that could indicate cancer might also appear on parts of the body where bruises wouldn’t normally occur, like on the head, face, thighs or back, Dr. [Eunice] Wang says."
Back pain
Finally, the last of the subtle signs that could indicate you have cancer is back pain.
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For Halpin, you'd imagine it could be easily explained as she had just carried a human around in her belly for nine months and then would be picking up Caiden from his cot frequently.
Verywell Health states: "Back pain is rarely a sign of cancer. When it is, it tends to happen along with other symptoms of cancer.
"Some cancers that cause back pain include spinal tumors, lung cancer, breast cancer, gastrointestinal cancers, and blood cancers. Undiagnosed skin cancer can also spread to the spine, causing back pain."
Kristi Halpin's story
Halpin was diagnosed with breast cancer, which had spread to her spine, lungs, and ribs.
Tragically, she has been told that she has stage 4 metastatic breast cancer cancer, and is sadly terminal.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the American Cancer Society on 1-800-227-2345 or via their live chat feature, available 24/7 every day of the year.
Joe Yates