The Finish Line's Sarah Greene reveals ovarian cancer symptoms that could have saved mum's life
The Finish Line star Sarah Greene opened up about the Ovarian Cancer symptoms that could have saved her mother's life, after she passed away just three and a half weeks after being diagnosed.
Marjie Lawrence, Sarah's mother, tragically died from Ovarian Cancer in June 2010, following an initial misdiagnosis as irritable bowel syndrome.
The 66 year old presenter, who is back on our screens alongside Roman Kemp on BBC quiz show The Finish Line, appeared on This Morning alongside Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby back in 2017 to spread awareness about the disease. Sarah is the widow of late BBC Radio 1 DJ Mike Smith and a former Blue Peter presenter.
During the show, she confessed that had they been aware of the symptoms earlier, her mother might have had a chance at survival, reports the Mirror.
Sarah expressed: "With mum there were symptoms which had we known in advance we could have done something about it."
She emphasised the importance of early diagnosis, stating: "If there is an early diagnosis and you know those symptoms the chances of survival double."
As the daughter of Britain's pioneering DIY show host Harry Greene, Sarah has dedicated recent years to working with Target Ovarian Cancer with an aim to increase public knowledge of the condition.
Speaking to Holly and Phil, Sarah urged: "You could have all these symptoms and go to the GP and it's not ovarian cancer, but please for all our mums, sisters, daughters, go and get it checked out."
Fans of This Morning were quick to hit Twitter with their support for Sarah's message about ovarian cancer awareness.
One fan tweeted: "It's good to see Sarah Greene on television again and talking about such an overlooked problem. #ThisMorning".
Another chimed in with: "Aww! Sarah Greene is doing a great job of raising awareness for ovarian cancer. I didn't know the symptoms 10 mins ago. #ThisMorning".
And a third shared: "Watching @RealSarahGreene on @thismorning. Well done Sarah for raising awareness. Lots of love #ThisMorning #ovariancancer".
Over the years, the presenter has opened up about the importance of ovarian cancer awareness and has worked hard to help increase public understanding of the signs and symptoms to look out for. In 2022 she wrote a letter in the Stroud Times which touched on this message.
"Had we and her doctors been aware of the symptoms, Marjie might be alive today. If diagnosed at the earliest stage, 9 in 10 women will survive. But two-thirds of women are diagnosed late, when the cancer is harder to treat," she wrote.
She added: "The main symptoms of ovarian cancer are: persistent bloating, feeling full or having difficulty eating, tummy pain, and needing to wee more often or more urgently."
