Hastings mum with incurable lung cancer says "no one joined the dots"

Jules Fielder, 40, from Hastings, experienced a series of what she now knows to be potential lung cancer symptoms: back pain, shoulder pain and a lump in her neck. It was not until months later, however, that she was finally sent for tests.

She said: “I feel lung cancer is still very much associated with men, and especially men who smoke or who work with asbestos.

“It’s a really dangerous misconception because when someone like me goes to the doctor with symptoms, we’re fighting against these stereotypes… and then it’s too late.”

Jules went on to receive the devastating news that she had stage 4 lung cancer which had spread to her spine and pelvis.

She said: “No one ever joined the dots of my symptoms until it was too late. Each symptom was treated individually rather than one potential cause.

“My back pain was treated as sciatica. The pain in my shoulder was thought to be tennis elbow and the lump in my neck was dismissed as a swollen gland.

“I feel these non-respiratory symptoms, coupled with my age and the fact that I had never smoked, is why my lung cancer was caught late.”

Jules is undergoing therapy to treat her lung cancer. Dubbing it her “magic medicine”, she is responding well to treatment and is living life the best she can, including recent holidays to New York, Mauritius and Rome.

Jules with her son on a recent holiday to New York (Image: Submitted) Away from the sunshine and the sights, Jules cannot help but wonder if things could have been different.

She said: “I try and stay as positive as I can. I’ve always been passionate about travelling and I’m fortunate that my cancer is stable, and I can continue to explore the world with my husband and son.

“But in the back of my mind, I know it’s temporary. One day, my magic medicine will stop working. As good as this treatment is, it isn’t a cure. My cancer wasn’t caught early enough for that.

“I try not to dwell on that too much because it doesn’t do me any good. But I want my story to help change the narrative and perception of lung cancer.

“I want it to act as a constant reminder that anyone can get this disease because, truly knowing that, could make all the difference to someone else.”

Inspired by people like Jules, the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation has launched its Let Go of the Labels campaign for lung cancer awareness month, calling for a stop to terms like smoker and never-smoker.

Paula Chadwick, chief executive of the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation said: “Lung cancer is still so intrinsically linked to smoking but the reality is anyone can get this disease, regardless of if they have smoked or not.”