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Woman, 47, Diagnosed With Stage 4 Cancer Issues Urgent Warning About Subtle Symptom She Dismissed
At first, it felt like burnout. The kind of bone-deep tiredness every busy woman knows too well the mental fog after school drop-offs, the aching limbs after a long workday, the exhaustion that whispers just keep pushing. For Susan Schmidt, a 45-year-old mother of two and practicing physiotherapist, it was just life catching up. Or so she thought.
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But what if that whisper wasn’t stress or age creeping in what if it was your body waving a red flag?
Every year, thousands of women quietly endure subtle symptoms they chalk up to menopause, diet, or everyday fatigue. Meanwhile, colorectal cancer once considered a disease of older men is silently on the rise in younger adults, particularly women under 50. According to the American Cancer Society, diagnoses in this age group have nearly doubled since the 1990s. And unlike textbook cases, early signs rarely scream for attention.
Susan never saw it coming. No dramatic weight loss. No blood in her stool. Just extreme tiredness, a bout of constipation, and two nights of pain she described as “worse than childbirth.” Months later, she would hear the words no one expects at 45: Stage 4 bowel cancer.
Her story is not just about illness it’s a call to pay attention when something feels off, even if the world tells you it’s nothing.
The Symptom That Didn’t Seem Serious
Susan Schmidt’s life was full. As a physiotherapist running her own clinic and raising two young children, she was used to the relentless pace of work, parenting, and managing a household. So when she started feeling unusually tired in May 2023, she did what many women do she pushed through it.
“I just thought I was exhausted because of life,” Susan recalled. But this wasn’t the usual end-of-day weariness. The fatigue was so intense that she found herself needing to pull the car over for naps after short drives. “I’d drop my daughter off at rowing and have to stop halfway home to sleep for 40 minutes,” she said. “That’s not normal. That was a warning sign. But I brushed it off.”
Extreme tiredness is one of the most overlooked symptoms of serious illness especially in women. It’s often attributed to hormone fluctuations, stress, or simply being overworked. For Susan, the assumption was early menopause. It seemed logical; she was in her mid-40s, juggling a lot, and didn’t have any glaring symptoms of something more serious. No weight loss, no blood in her stool, and no alarming test results.
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The fatigue, however, wasn’t going away. It was her body’s first quiet plea for attention a subtle but persistent signal that something deeper was wrong.
In a culture that often romanticizes resilience and endurance, especially among women, exhaustion is frequently normalized. But as Susan’s story shows, when fatigue is unrelenting and out of proportion to your lifestyle, it can be a sign of more than just a busy life. It can be your body sounding an alarm that’s easy to miss until it’s too loud to ignore.
“Fatigue that interferes with daily function, especially if it’s sudden or unexplained, should never be dismissed,” says Dr. Heather Yeo, a colorectal surgeon at Weill Cornell Medicine. “It can be one of the earliest signs of several underlying health issues, including cancer.”
For Susan, this overlooked symptom marked the beginning of a devastating diagnosis but also a mission to ensure others don’t ignore the whispers their body is trying to send.
When ‘Normal’ Symptoms Mask Something Serious
After months of unrelenting fatigue, Susan Schmidt boarded a plane to France in June 2023 for what was supposed to be a dream getaway. It was a break from routine, a celebration with friends, and a chance to recharge. But amidst the wine, laughter, and rich cuisine, another symptom quietly emerged constipation.
“I’d never had constipation in my life,” Susan later said. “But in France, I just wasn’t going properly. I figured it was the rich French food, too much cheese. I didn’t think more of it.”
Constipation during travel is common enough to dismiss. Like many, Susan assumed the change in routine and diet was to blame. But the discomfort lingered. When she returned home to Brisbane, it intensified— nd then came the pain.
One night, after caring for her ill horse, Susan collapsed in the bathroom in excruciating agony. Vomiting, diarrhea, and cramping that she described as “worse than childbirth” left her curled on the floor for hours. Still, the initial medical tests blood work and stool samples came back normal. With no visible red flags, her pain was chalked up to a possible stomach bug, maybe stress, maybe something she ate.
But something was wrong.
“That’s the problem with bowel cancer,” Susan would later reflect. “People don’t raise the alarm. Even I didn’t. I had health literacy. I was a physiotherapist. But it never occurred to me to consider bowel cancer.”
Her experience mirrors what many experts call a dangerous gap in early detection. Bowel cancer often develops silently, with symptoms so vague they’re easy to overlook or misdiagnose. According to the American Gastroenterological Association, early signs of colorectal cancer may include subtle changes in bowel habits, bloating, fatigue, and abdominal discomfort symptoms that are easily mistaken for common issues like diet sensitivities, menstrual irregularities, or stress.
Women, in particular, are more likely to have their symptoms dismissed. A 2022 study published in The Lancet found that women with gastrointestinal complaints were more likely than men to be misdiagnosed or have their symptoms attributed to psychological causes or hormonal changes.
By the time Susan pushed for a colonoscopy in September 2023 after a second episode of searing pain her tumor had grown so large that doctors couldn’t complete the procedure. It wasn’t indigestion. It wasn’t menopause. It was stage four bowel cancer.
Her story highlights how easily “normal” can become dangerous when symptoms are normalized or overlooked not just by patients, but sometimes by providers as well.
“You don’t need to have blood in your stool or rapid weight loss for it to be cancer,” says Dr. Zuri Murrell, Director of the Cedars-Sinai Colorectal Cancer Center. “Constipation, bloating, fatigue these may seem minor, but if they persist or feel unusual, they warrant investigation.”
The Reality of a Stage 4 Diagnosis
When Susan Schmidt awoke from her colonoscopy in September 2023, the silence in the room was deafening. Instead of the usual post-procedure reassurance and a sandwich, she was told she might need emergency surgery. The doctors hadn’t even been able to complete the test the tumor in her rectum was too large to allow the scope through.
Further scans delivered the news no one is ever prepared to hear: stage 4 bowel cancer. The disease had spread beyond the rectum, invading her uterus, pelvic lymph nodes, and lungs. Despite living an active, health-conscious lifestyle, and despite being a medical professional herself, Susan’s cancer had progressed silently and aggressively.
“I had no idea,” she said. “No weight loss, no blood in my stool, no dramatic symptoms. Just fatigue, constipation, and two episodes of pain. And yet here I was stage 4.”
Stage 4, or metastatic, bowel cancer means the cancer has traveled beyond the colon to distant organs. According to the American Cancer Society, the five-year relative survival rate for colorectal cancer that has spread to distant parts of the body is approximately 15%. Treatment at this stage focuses on controlling the disease, improving quality of life, and extending survival rather than achieving a cure.
Susan immediately began intensive chemotherapy 12 grueling rounds over six months. In March 2024, she underwent a major operation that included a bowel resection, hysterectomy, and oophorectomy to remove all visible tumors. While her surgeons achieved clear margins a brief glimmer of hope the joy was short-lived. Scans preparing her for radiation revealed dozens of tiny new tumors in her lungs. Radiation was no longer an option.
A second chemotherapy drug was tried. When that failed, immunotherapy offered a new possibility until her liver reacted severely, triggering autoimmune hepatitis. With treatment halted for four months, the cancer spread again, this time to a lymph node near her heart. She restarted chemotherapy in November 2024, and after five doses, one tumor disappeared and the rest stabilized.
Through it all, Susan’s resilience has remained unwavering. But the toll is undeniable. Peripheral neuropathy has made her work as a physiotherapist difficult. Her energy levels fluctuate wildly. Memory lapses, emotional fatigue, and physical vulnerability are now part of daily life.
Still, she chooses hope. “I feel well when I’m not on chemo,” she said. “That gives me hope. I believe the answer to cancer is out there. I just have to stay well long enough to get there.”
Her experience underscores the brutal reality of advanced cancer. It’s not just about the disease it’s about learning to live with uncertainty, managing the emotional weight of disrupted plans, and navigating the shifting ground of hope and loss. It’s about grieving not just the life that was, but the life that might have been.
Susan’s story is also a stark reminder of how late-stage diagnoses steal precious time not just from the patient, but from their families. She and her husband had to tell their two children, then aged 13 and 11, the truth about her diagnosis. “They know the life expectancy,” she said, “and they’re handling it beautifully. I’m so proud of them.”
The Silent Rise of Early-Onset Bowel Cancer
When Susan Schmidt was first diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer, she was stunned not just by the severity of her condition, but by the fact that no one had considered cancer a possibility. “I thought bowel cancer was an old person’s disease,” she said. That assumption isn’t hers alone. For decades, colorectal cancer has been associated with adults over 50. But that’s changing and quickly.
In recent years, colorectal cancer has been rising alarmingly among younger adults. According to data from the National Cancer Institute, the proportion of colorectal cancer cases in people under 55 nearly doubled from 11% in 1995 to 20% in 2019. The American Cancer Society now recommends that colon cancer screening begin at age 45 lowered from the previous guideline of 50 in response to this surge in early-onset diagnoses.
Experts are still trying to understand why this shift is happening. Lifestyle and environmental factors are likely contributors: diets high in processed foods and red meat, sedentary behavior, obesity, smoking, and alcohol use are all known risks. Yet even among those with healthy habits like Susan cancer can still strike.
“We don’t know for sure why we are seeing earlier onset and mortality from colon cancer,” said Dr. Heather Yeo, a colorectal surgeon at Weill Cornell Medicine, in a 2023 interview with SurvivorNet. “It is likely a combination of factors, including diet and genetics, as well as access to care and some environmental factors.”
What makes early-onset cases particularly dangerous is that they often go undetected for too long. In younger patients, symptoms are frequently minimized or misdiagnosed. As Susan experienced, fatigue may be attributed to stress, constipation to diet, and abdominal pain to a virus or hormonal fluctuations. The delay in diagnosis can mean that by the time cancer is discovered, it’s already advanced.
This pattern has prompted a growing public health concern. While screening via colonoscopy remains the gold standard, younger adults may not meet age or risk thresholds for insurance-covered testing especially if they have no family history or visible symptoms. And unlike some other cancers, colon cancer often starts as polyps that cause no pain or warning signs at all.
“Colon cancer is considered a silent and deadly killer,” Dr. Yeo noted. “That’s why we screen for it—because people often don’t know they have it until it’s progressed.”
Breaking the Silence Around Bowel Health
For Susan Schmidt, the hardest part of her diagnosis wasn’t just the physical toll it was realizing how long she had been suffering in silence. Not from denial, but from discomfort with the topic itself. “I didn’t talk about my bowel habits,” she admitted. “Who does?”
That single question reveals a powerful truth: conversations about bowel health remain steeped in stigma and embarrassment, particularly among women. Digestive issues like constipation, bloating, or irregular bowel movements are often brushed off, minimized, or avoided altogether in daily conversation—even with doctors. But this silence can be deadly.
Bowel cancer, unlike many other cancers, often presents with vague or socially taboo symptoms. Changes in bowel habits, fatigue, and abdominal discomfort don’t tend to spark urgent concern. And for women, those symptoms are frequently misattributed to hormonal fluctuations, diet, or anxiety. As a result, serious warning signs are downplayed not just by patients, but sometimes by the healthcare system itself.
Even as a trained health professional, Susan didn’t initially consider cancer. “I had health literacy. I was a physiotherapist,” she said. “But it never occurred to me to consider bowel cancer.” It was only after two extreme episodes of abdominal pain and a second visit to her doctor that she was finally referred for a colonoscopy.
Determined to prevent others from making the same mistake, Susan has become an outspoken advocate for destigmatizing bowel health. In the wake of her diagnosis, she founded The Floozie Foundation, a nonprofit that provides resources for bowel cancer patients, supports oncology nurses, and promotes open conversations about early detection. Its mission is both personal and public: normalize talking about bowel health, break the stigma, and save lives.
Her advocacy goes beyond awareness. Susan emphasizes the need for persistence and self-advocacy in healthcare. “Don’t settle for reassurance,” she urges. “Push for answers. Even if your blood tests are normal, even if your doctor says it’s stress or menopause trust your instincts.”
Her story also highlights the importance of community. Throughout her treatment, friends and family formed a support group affectionately dubbed “Sooz’s Floozies.” They cheered her on during chemo, danced in the streets, and stood on every corner of her route to the hospital for her final treatment, waving signs and balloons. In Susan’s words, “Supporting me has helped them too. That’s why community matters.”
Don’t Wait. Speak Up
Susan Schmidt’s story is not just a cautionary tale it’s a wake-up call. Her journey from subtle symptoms to a stage 4 cancer diagnosis reveals how easily serious health issues can be missed when we downplay discomfort or rely solely on routine tests. It also underscores the life-saving power of persistence.
She had no dramatic symptoms, no red flags in her bloodwork, and no family history of bowel cancer. But she had her instincts and eventually, the courage to insist something was wrong.
Her advice to others is clear and urgent:
“You know your body. If something doesn’t feel right even if the tests say you’re fine don’t stop asking questions.”
The earlier bowel cancer is caught, the greater the chance of successful treatment. Yet too many people, especially women under 50, delay seeking help or are told their symptoms are nothing to worry about. That delay can be fatal.
It’s time to challenge the silence around bowel health, normalize conversations that might feel awkward, and empower individuals particularly younger adults to seek answers, advocate for testing, and demand follow-up when symptoms persist.
Screenings like colonoscopies save lives. And listening to your body, even when it whispers, could be the difference between catching cancer early and facing it too late.
Susan is still fighting. She’s still traveling, loving her family, and making every day count. But her most urgent legacy may be this: helping others act sooner.
Because when it comes to cancer, waiting quietly can be far more dangerous than speaking up.