Michelle Mistook Cancer for a Stomach Bug as Australia’s Cases Soar

When Sydney makeup artist Michelle Dubé developed mild nausea one Sunday afternoon, she assumed something she had eaten was to blame.

The 58-year-old had no pain, was not vomiting and saw little reason to think the seemingly minor symptoms were anything more serious than a stomach bug.

Seven days later, however, the mother of three was in hospital. Doctors found a small tumour at the head of her pancreas and diagnosed her with devastating Stage 2 pancreatic cancer.

Michelle is now enduring intensive chemotherapy before major surgery. She is sharing her experience to alert other Australians to the subtle warning signs she nearly dismissed.

‘I thought I had an infection [and] was going home with antibiotics,’ she told the Daily Mail.

Her diagnosis comes as concern grows over upper gastrointestinal (GI) cancers. New research shows that one Australian dies from this group of diseases every 57 minutes, even as many people remain unaware of how common they are or which symptoms should prompt medical attention.

Before receiving her diagnosis in August, Michelle was leading a busy and rewarding life in Sydney, where she lives with her husband and their three adult children.

She was running several businesses and making plans for the future. Cancer was the furthest thing from her mind when she first began to feel unwell.

The warning signs she almost ignored

‘I was lying on the lounge watching a movie, and I thought, “Oh, I actually don’t feel that great, I feel a bit nauseous”,’ she recalled.

Michelle initially believed the discomfort was linked to something she had eaten. She could not finish dinner that night, but did not think much more of it. The next morning, she told her husband she seemed to have picked up a stomach bug.

The nausea continued for the rest of the week, although it remained relatively mild.

As the days went by, though, she began noticing further changes: her urine had become darker, her bowel habits had altered and her skin appeared to be taking on a faint yellow tinge.

At first, Michelle was unsure whether her complexion had genuinely changed. By the following weekend, however, she was feeling considerably worse.

Unable to get an appointment with her usual GP, she went to a medical centre. The doctor there advised her to go to hospital for further tests.

Blood tests and scans identified a blockage in her bile duct. Doctors initially suspected a gallbladder condition and even discussed removing the organ.

Further investigations revealed a two-centimetre tumour at the head of her pancreas. The growth was blocking the bile duct and causing the symptoms she had mistaken for a stomach bug.

A subsequent PET scan found no apparent sign that the cancer had spread elsewhere. Michelle was diagnosed with Stage 2 pancreatic cancer.

Although the diagnosis came as a devastating shock, she still considers herself fortunate that the symptoms prompted her to seek help when they did, particularly given how easily the mild nausea could have been dismissed.

The gruelling treatment plan saving Michelle’s life 

While Michelle had begun to suspect something serious was wrong by the time doctors started searching for a tumour, she admitted that the reality of her diagnosis and the treatment that followed had been far more difficult than she could ever have imagined.

Her parents were with her in hospital when doctors delivered the news, while her husband was balancing responsibilities at home and their business.

Since then, she has begun a demanding treatment plan involving six rounds of chemotherapy ahead of a major operation known as a Whipple procedure, followed by a further six rounds of chemotherapy if her body is able to tolerate it.

At the time of her interview, Michelle had completed three rounds of chemotherapy and is preparing for surgery shortly after Christmas.

The Whipple procedure, also known as a pancreaticoduodenectomy, is a complex operation typically performed to treat certain cancers affecting the pancreas.

It generally involves removing the head of the pancreas, the first section of the small intestine, the gallbladder and part of the bile duct, before reconstructing the digestive tract to allow food to pass through.

For patients whose cancer can be surgically removed, the procedure offers a potential chance of long-term survival, although the operation is extensive and recovery can be challenging.

Michelle is acutely aware of the difficult road ahead, admitting that the physical effects of chemotherapy have already pushed her to breaking point on several occasions.

While cancer patients are often praised for their bravery and resilience, she says the reality of living with the disease can be far more complicated, particularly when the expectation to remain positive becomes another burden to carry.

NEXT UP: Kuwait City: World’s Hottest City – NewsFinale

‘I do not feel like a cancer warrior. I have had a breakdown, and I’ve had the worst weeks of my entire life,’ she admitted.

‘There’s a definite pressure to kind of make everyone feel like that it’s going to be okay. As a mum, that’s what you have to do.’

The shock diagnosis has also forced Michelle to step away from much of the professional life she had spent years building, with the side effects of treatment leaving her unable to keep up with even the simplest tasks associated with her beauty business.

The family history that raised new questions

Michelle’s diagnosis has also prompted her to investigate whether an inherited genetic mutation could have contributed to her cancer, particularly after losing her sister to ovarian cancer at just 52.

Following her sister’s diagnosis, Michelle underwent a hysterectomy as a precaution, hoping to reduce her own risk of developing a gynaecological cancer.

However, she has since learned that certain inherited genetic mutations associated with ovarian cancer can also increase the risk of pancreatic cancer, raising new questions about her family’s medical history.

Changes in genes including BRCA1 and BRCA2 are known to increase the risk of several cancers, although having relatives affected by the disease does not necessarily mean a person carries an inherited mutation.

Michelle has now begun genetic testing to investigate whether there may be an underlying hereditary link, with the results yet to be confirmed.

Australia’s hidden cancer crisis

Michelle’s experience comes as new research from the Pancare Foundation highlights the growing toll of upper gastrointestinal cancers, which affect the pancreas, liver, stomach, oesophagus, gallbladder and bile ducts.

The findings reveal that one Australian dies from an upper GI cancer approximately every 57 minutes, with the group of diseases now responsible for more deaths than lung cancer when assessed using Cancer Australia’s tumour groupings.

Despite the scale of the problem, a national survey found just two per cent of Australians were aware of the extent of the crisis, highlighting a significant gap between the number of people affected and public understanding of the diseases.

The research, which examined two decades of Australian cancer mortality data alongside a national YouGov survey of more than 1,000 people, found that deaths from upper GI cancers had increased at twice the rate of overall cancer deaths during the past decade.

Upper GI cancers now account for almost one in five cancer deaths in Australia, despite receiving less than one in ten cancer research dollars in recent years.

According to Pancare Foundation’s Head of Research, Innovation and Advocacy, Dr Mark Buzza, the increase has been driven largely by rising deaths from pancreatic and liver cancers, which have doubled and tripled respectively over the past two decades.

‘This should ring alarm bells for governments about the community danger from this silent killer,’ he said.

One of the greatest challenges associated with pancreatic cancer is that symptoms can be vague or absent in the early stages, meaning the disease is frequently discovered only after it has progressed.

Warning signs can include persistent nausea, unexplained weight loss, changes in appetite, abdominal or back pain, pale stools, dark urine and jaundice, which causes yellowing of the skin or eyes.

Although Michelle’s symptoms can also be associated with less serious medical conditions, experts stress that persistent, unexplained or worsening changes should not be ignored.

‘That’s why we’re encouraging people to know the facts, ‘trust their gut’ and seek advice from their GP if something doesn’t feel right, because early detection and treatment are vital to improving survival,’ Dr Buzza said.

Beyond the physical challenges of treatment, Michelle says her diagnosis has fundamentally changed the way she thinks about the future, particularly the sacrifices she and her husband have made while saving for retirement.

Like many couples, they had spent years working hard, building their businesses and being careful with money, always believing there would be plenty of time to travel and enjoy life once they retired.

‘We are going travelling,’ she said, reflecting on the holidays they had postponed and the destinations, including Greece, they had always dreamed of visiting.

For now, Michelle remains focused on completing chemotherapy and preparing for surgery, hopeful that treatment will allow her to return to the family, career and experiences she treasures.