Susan was given soul-crushing news after ignoring the little-known warning signs - here's what she wants everyone to know before it's too late

Daily Mail​

15-06-2025

Susan Schmidt was only 45 when her life changed forever.
Fit, active, and running a physiotherapy business while raising two children, the Brisbane mum never expected that the relentless fatigue she was feeling could be anything more than early menopause.
Now 47, Susan is living with incurable stage four bowel cancer - and sharing her story in the hopes that it might prompt others to take action before it's too late.
'I just thought I was exhausted because of life,' the Brisbane mum told FEMAIL.
But the tiredness was unlike anything she'd ever known.
'In May 2023, I was having to pull the car over just to sleep. I'd drive 15 minutes to drop my daughter off at rowing and then have to stop halfway home to nap for 40 minutes,' she said.
'That's not normal. That was a warning sign. But I brushed it off.'
In June 2023, Susan and her family jetted off to France for a friend's wedding.
It was a dream holiday filled with catch-ups, wine and cheese - but for Susan, it alco came with sudden digestive issues.
'I'd never had constipation in my life,' she recalled.
'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.'
The symptoms worsened after she returned to Brisbane, and things took a terrifying turn one night when her beloved horse fell ill with salmonella.
'That night, I ended up on the bathroom floor in absolute agony. Vomiting, diarrhoea, unbearable pain. It lasted for eight hours. I honestly thought I had caught salmonella from the horse,' she said.
The pain was like nothing she'd ever experienced.
'It was worse than childbirth. I was crawling into the shower, trying to relieve the pain with heat. It was a nine out of ten on the pain scale,' she said.
Still, the initial tests showed nothing.
'Blood tests, stool samples - all normal. No blood in my stool. Perfect bloods, my GP said. But they weren't looking for cancer.'
Four days later, it happened again. Another episode of debilitating pain.
This time, Susan returned to her GP.
'After the second attack, he referred me for a colonoscopy. I got on the cancellation list and luckily got an appointment within three weeks - it can usually take months,' she said.
That colonoscopy, in September 2023, changed everything.
'I woke up and they wouldn't give me food. They said, "You might have to go into emergency surgery." I knew that wasn't good,' she said.
Doctors couldn't complete the procedure - a tumour in Susan's rectum was so large, they couldn't get the camera past it.
Further scans revealed a devastating diagnosis: Stage four bowel cancer which had already spread through the rectal wall to her uterus, pelvic lymph nodes, and to her lungs.
Susan began an intense course of chemotherapy: 12 rounds of treatment over six months.
'It was brutal, but I made it through,' she admitted.
In March 2024, she underwent surgery, and doctors were able to remove all visible tumours with clear margins - what she described as 'exciting' news.
The plan was then to tackle the lung tumours with targeted stereotactic radiation - but the celebration was short-lived.
'When they went to prepare for the radiation, they found lots of small tumours throughout my lungs,' she said.
'Radiation wasn't possible anymore.'
A second chemotherapy drug followed, and when that didn't shrink the cancer, her team tried immunotherapy.
'But I developed autoimmune hepatitis. My liver couldn't handle it. I had to stop all treatment for four months,' Susan said.
During that pause, the cancer spread again - this time to a lymph node behind her heart.
'I restarted chemo in November last year. Thankfully, after five doses, that new tumour was gone and the others had stayed the same.'
She's just completed that round of treatment, but her journey is far from over.
'The diagnosis is incurable,' she said.
'The plan is to stay well for as long as I can. I'll likely go back on chemo after my next trip overseas.'
Susan's story is, sadly, not unique. Early onset bowel cancer - diagnosed in people under 50 - is on the rise in Australia.
But the stigma and silence around bowel symptoms mean many people don't speak up until it's too late.
'I didn't talk about my bowel habits. Who does?' she said.
'That's the problem with bowel cancer - people don't raise the alarm.'
Even as a health professional, she was caught off guard.
'I had health literacy. I was a physiotherapist. But it never occurred to me to consider bowel cancer. I didn't have blood in my stool, no dramatic symptoms - just fatigue, constipation, and two extreme episodes of pain.'
That lack of clear early warning signs is exactly why Susan is now sharing her story.
'I want people to know the signs. I want them to push for answers if something feels off,' she said.
'Even if your blood tests are normal, even if you're told it's stress or diet or menopause - follow your instincts.'
Susan and her husband broke the news to their two children, then 13 and 11, shortly after her diagnosis.
'I decided to be honest,' she said.
'They were remarkably resilient. They know the life expectancy, and they're handling it beautifully. I'm so proud of them.'
Her parents and wider family were also devastated, but quickly rallied around her.
'I'm really lucky. I have an incredible support network. My friends even formed a group called 'Sooz's Floozies' during chemo. They'd dance in the street, block traffic, cheer me on,' she said.
On the day of her final chemo round, friends stood on every street corner on her drive to the hospital, waving balloons and signs.
'It's helped them too. Supporting me has helped them deal with it. That's why community matters,' she said.
But treatment has taken a toll.
Peripheral neuropathy has made it difficult for Susan to work as a physio. Her memory is fuzzy, her energy unpredictable - but her outlook has shifted.
'I don't rush anymore. I try to stay present. I say 'I love you' to my kids every time they leave. I make sure every moment counts,' she said.
She's planning a bucket-list trip to Italy in two weeks' time - and dreams of seeing the Northern Lights in Finland.
'Most of my goals are travel-related. Just being with friends and family. That's what matters,' Susan said.
There's also a quieter grief.
'It's a grief for the life that might have been. Not what was, but what could be. Especially for my children. If they lose their mother, how will it shape their lives? That's the grief I carry,' she explained.
Still, Susan refuses to lose hope.
'I feel well. I feel healthy when I'm not on chemo. That gives me hope,' she said.
'I believe the answer to cancer is out there. I just have to stay well long enough to get there.'
Susan's message is clear: Know the symptoms. Speak up. Push for answers.
'Bowel cancer isn't just for older people. Early onset bowel cancer is increasing at a frightening rate,' she warned.
She wants women - and especially younger women - to listen to their bodies, and trust when something feels off.
'I ignored the warning signs for months. It never occurred to me it could be cancer. Now I'm living with stage four,' Susan said.
June is Bowel Cancer Awareness Month. Launched in partnership with Bowel Cancer Australia