Nurse Underwent amputation After Rare Bone Cancer Misdiagnosed as Muscle Injury
LONDON – A British nurse initially dismissed her leg pain as a muscle injury,only too discover she had a rare and aggressive bone cancer requiring amputation.Sarah Fay, 41, is sharing her story during Bone Cancer Awareness Week to raise awareness of the disease and its frequently enough-subtle initial symptoms.
Ms. Fay’s ordeal began wiht pain in her calf, which she initially attributed to exercise. however,the discomfort persisted and worsened,eventually prompting her to seek medical attention. Following scans, she received the devastating diagnosis of spindle cell sarcoma of the bone – an extremely rare soft-tissue tumour, according to the Bone Cancer Research Trust. Such tumours most commonly arise in patients over the age of 40 and are extremely rare, making up just 2-5 per cent of all primary bone cancer cases, the charity says.
The diagnosis is particularly poignant as Ms.Fay is a healthcare professional herself.She was informed her only viable treatment option would be amputation, as her blood vessels and nerves were “completely encased” by the tumour. “They showed me a picture of my scan, and the tumour takes up the entirety of my calf,” she said. “Ther wasn’t a way they could remove it safely to leave me with a functioning leg.”
Ms. Fay underwent an above-the-knee amputation on December 17, 2024, and described the operation and her healing process as “very smooth.” Adapting to using a prosthetic was “very difficult,” though, and she initially found it “exhausting” to walk short distances. “It’s comforting to know this is the hardest it will ever be,” she said. “As time goes on, I’ll get better prosthetic parts, a better socket and knee joint, things that will make it easier.”
She will now have scans every three months for the next two years to monitor for any potential recurrences of cancer. Ms. Fay has returned to work,in a non-clinical setting for the time being,and noted she feels “more emotional” following her experience.
Ms.Fay is sharing her story to mark Bone Cancer Awareness Week by the Bone Cancer Research Trust, the UK’s leading charity dedicated to fighting primary bone cancer. “If sharing my story means bone cancer is spoken about more within healthcare, that’s the main thing,” she said.
For more facts, visit the website for the Bone Cancer research Trust: bcrt.org.uk.
