A Canadian woman whose fiancé was diagnosed with stage 4 oesophageal cancer on Boxing Day has shared the devastating signs doctors narrowly missed.
Jessica Beasley has taken to the social media platform TikTok to urge people that ‘when you feel like something is wrong, don’t stop advocating’ after her fiancé Dan’s repeated stomach pain and vomiting were mistakenly believed by doctors to be a stomach ulcer.
Ms Beasley said that Dan, just 37 years old, had been prescribed acid blockers in March 2024 after complaining of stomach pains and was denied a scope despite having a family history of cancer.
Following a persistent cough, he was prescribed an inhaler. While he experienced ongoing gastrointestinal pain and issues, doctors told him he was ‘too young’ to be experiencing any form of cancer.
Then, he experienced 60 pounds worth of unexplained weight loss, which, Ms Beadley said no medical professionals flagged.
After eventually being misdiagnosed with pancreatitis, it wasn’t until Dan was admitted to an emergency room with vomiting, extreme fatigue and stomach pain on December 26, 2024 that doctors finally provided him with the CT scan he so desperately needed.
The results devastatingly revealed that her beloved fiancé had esophageal cancer that had spread.
Sharing her family’s heartbreaking ordeal, Ms Beasley said: ‘He went to the doctor whenever he was sick and requested tests that would have caught it sooner but was denied. We are hoping for a miracle.
Canadian Jessica Beasley’s fiancé Dan, 37, had repeated stomach pain and vomiting but doctors mistakenly believed his stage 4 oesophageal cancer was just a stomach ulcer in March 2024
It wasn’t until Dan was admitted to an emergency room with vomiting, extreme fatigue and stomach pain on December 26, 2024 that doctors finally provided him with the CT scan that confirmed his devastating diagnosis
‘The screening for cancer needs to be done so much younger but for some reason it’s still a fight to do so.’
Having received a prognosis of just 14 months, Ms Beasley’s main priority is now ensuring that the family ‘lives life to the fullest’ while also working to support ‘our kids with their grief and life changes’.
The young mother said they are focusing on having quality family time every weekend, maintaining a consistent routine for her children and also on their future wedding as a couple.
To help her children with the significant life change, she also shared that they are creating ‘calm corners’ in each of their children’s’ bedrooms to provide a ‘safe space for hard feelings’, alongside counselling.
In 2022, there were up to 511,054 new cases of oesophageal cancer worldwide, according to the World Cancer Research Fund.
In the UK, it serves as the 14th most common cancer in the UK, with 26 cases every day and a survival rate of just 12 per cent.
