A mum who has made 200 calls to her GP to set up an appointment has shared her shock cancer diagnosis – which she only got through reverse surgery.
Jolene Segrave said she spent about two months being seen at Ridge Medical Center in Bradford.
The 32-year-old first developed uncomfortable symptoms in October, complaining of extreme tiredness and itching all over her body, before losing weight and suffering from night sweats.
After a night of drinking that same month, the mother-of-three felt pain in her shoulder and arm and thought she was having a heart attack.
She was finally diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma in February.
Ms Segrave only found out she had the aggressive form of blood cancer when she decided to move her entire family to another GP practice, who then referred her to specialists.
Jolene Segrave said she spent about two months being seen at Ridge Medical Center
As recently as February, Ms Segrave was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma after trying “hundreds of times” to see a local doctor
The mother-of-three first developed symptoms of extreme fatigue and itching all over her body in October, then began to lose weight and suffered from night sweats
She said: “I called 200 times to get through.
‘[On one] On a particular call, when I finally managed to get through, they cut me off before I even entered the queuing system.
“I moved away from there with my whole family [The Ridge Medical Centre].’
Ms Segrave, who has children aged ten, five and one, added: “I thought I was going to have a heart attack. It’s not something you expect when you’re 32.
“I would tell people that if you have lumps they should be checked out immediately.
“You may even need to change your GP like I did.”
Ms Segrave said she felt very unwell about six months ago, with a worrying array of symptoms.
But she claims screenshots from her phone prove she made hundreds of unsuccessful calls to her practice and once spent over 53 minutes on hold only to be cut off.
In December, she registered her family with Bradford Student Health Services, where she was given an appointment and medics found two bumps on her neck.
She was then referred via the two-week waiting program – what asks for an urgent appointment with a specialist for people with symptoms that could indicate cancer.
Ms Segrave was examined by a specialist at Bradford Royal Infirmary and then sent for an ultrasound-guided biopsy.
In February, Ms Segrave received the devastating news that she has Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a rare cancer that develops in the lymphatic system.
Hodgkin lymphoma starts in the white blood cells.
It is named after Thomas Hodgkin, an English doctor who first identified the disease in 1832.
It affects around 2,000 people each year in the UK and 8,500 each year in the US.
Ms Segrave has since started chemotherapy for the disease found in her neck, armpit, abdomen and bones, and has shaved all her hair after it fell out after a nap.
She said: “This type of cancer is very aggressive. There are six escalation cycles. I’m fine, but the chemotherapy is making you pretty tired.
Ms Segrave said she took her entire family out of Ridge Medical Practice (pictured) and to another general practice
Ms Segrave has since started chemotherapy for the disease found in her neck, armpit, abdomen and bones, and has shaved all her hair after it fell out after a nap
“One day I fell asleep on the sofa and woke up with hair on the pillows. That’s when I knew it was time to cut it all off. I wanted to take control.’
A spokesman for The Ridge Medical Practice wished Ms Segrave the best with her treatment but refused to confirm if she was a previous patient with them.
They told the Telegraph and Argus: “We are very sorry to hear that this woman has been diagnosed with Hodgkin Lymphoma, which must be very worrying for her and her family, and we hope her treatment is going well and with positive results has for her.
“Because we respect and take very seriously our commitments to confidentiality and information management, we can neither confirm nor deny if this lady was ever on our patient list and we cannot specifically address the issues raised in this story .
“We always encourage our patients to let us know as soon as they have any issues with our services as we can usually help them immediately and advise them on how to get the most out of our practice whenever they need us.
“Our complaints procedures are clearly displayed on our website and in our practices and include advice on how to get help with support from an advocacy team to ensure patients have equal access to give us feedback on our practice.
‘We are constantly reviewing access to our services and strive to find ways to improve it.’
MailOnline has reached out to The Ridge for comment.
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