Woman says lip filler 'saved her life' after they swelled and I was diagnosed with leukaemia

Edita Jucaite, 36, had a lip filler injection in April but immediately saw her lip swell up and left with severe bruising

A nurse, Edita Jucaite, aged 36 from Banbury, Oxfordshire, fortuitously discovered she had leukaemia after a lip filler procedure caused her lips to swell and bruise. Despite having undergone similar treatments before with no issues, the reaction last April was immediate and alarming.

The doctor who performed the procedure, also a colleague, advised her to see her GP. Alongside the swelling, Edita had been experiencing weight loss.

Just hours after a blood test at her GP's appointment, her surgery urgently called her in. They suspected leukaemia, which was later confirmed through further tests as chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML).

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Edita began oral chemotherapy and is now in remission, although she will require lifelong medication to keep the cancer at bay. Reflecting on her experience, Edita said: "Not many people can say that lip fillers saved their life - but I can! " She added, "If the bruising hadn’t happened and I hadn’t been encouraged to see the GP because of it then I may well have put it off again and again which could have then meant the leukaemia may have progressed and been much harder to treat."

Edita also mentioned she was unaware of the signs and symptoms of leukaemia, attributing her weight loss to dieting for a holiday and her lack of fatigue to consuming energy drinks.

"There definitely needs to be more general awareness of leukaemia and what to look out for so more people can be diagnosed in time for treatment to be effective like I was."

Leukaemia Care and Leukaemia UK highlight worrying stats from a YouGov survey showing that less than one-sixth (14%) of UK adults can spot all four primary leukaemia symptoms: unusual bruising, unusual bleeding, fatigue, and repeated infections. This alarming gap in knowledge is said to play a part in why over a third of diagnoses come at such a critical juncture in A&E.

In the UK, there are approximately 10,000 new leukaemia cases each year, with around 5,000 sadly resulting in death. Significantly, 37% of those who find out they have leukaemia get this heartbreaking news in A&E, a percentage higher than any other type of cancer.

Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) patients are especially likely to receive their diagnosis in emergency settings, with over half discovered this way; given AML's swift progression and severity, rapid detection and treatment are crucial. On average, leukaemia affects 27 people daily across the country, and presently over 50,000 individuals in the UK are managing the illness.

It's a common misconception that leukaemia mostly impacts children, but the reality is that it mainly affects people aged over 65. For more information visit www.spotleukaemia.org.uk.