A 28-year-old woman has died less than two months after being told she had blood cancer, which she initially wrote off as the flu.
Ashlee Colmer, from Nuriootpa, north west of Adelaide, was diagnosed with t-cell leukaemia on November 26, after falling ill for six weeks with what she thought was a nasty bout of the flu.
Unable to shake the illness, Ms Colmer, who was a nail tech artist with her own business Barossa Lash and Nails Beauty Bar, took herself to Royal Adelaide Hospital.
‘She never got discharged,’ her cousin Megan Atze told the Adelaide Advertiser.
‘[She had] lots of tests, blood transfusions, chemo.’
Ashlee Colmer, 28-year-old nail technician from South Australia, lost her battle with blood cancer only two months after she learnt of the diagnosis
The devastated family, including husband Brayden, who she married on October 30, 2021, are still coming to terms with how quickly Ms Colmer deteriorated.
‘She was so brave, putting optimism and hope right up here, talking about remission, future plans,’ Ms Atze said.
‘I [saw] her one week prior. [She was] still eating, drinking, talking, laughing, making jokes and most importantly, still online shopping.’
Brayden was constantly at Ms Colmer’s side in hospital, the family said.
Ms Atze has organised a GoFundMe page to help pay for funeral and other expenses.
‘My beautiful cousin Ashlee just passed away Wednesday night, she was recently diagnosed with leukaemia,’ the page reads.
‘She was only 28.
‘She leaves behind her husband Brayden and many devastated family and friends.
‘She was such a bright, happy, cheerful person, with the most lovely giggle.
The devastated family, including husband Brayden, who she married on October 30, 2021, are still coming to terms with how quickly Ms Colmer deteriorated
‘We are asking some assistance with the funeral/memorial services, this was such an unexpected event that no one expected so suddenly.’
By Thursday evening the page had raised over $4,000 of its $15,000 target.
Ms Atze said she would remember her cousin as a keen baker, who made specialty cakes that sometimes she sold.
The grieving cousin would also remember Ms Colmer as someone who loved to giggle, gossip and joke, and kept on doing that even as she spent her last months in a hospital bed.
WHAT IS LEUKAEMIA?
Leukaemia is a cancer that starts in blood-forming tissue, usually the bone marrow.
It leads to the over-production of abnormal white blood cells, which fight off infections.
But a higher number of white blood cells means there is ‘less room’ for other cells, including red blood cells – which transport oxygen around the body – and platelets – which cause blood to clot when the skin is cut.
There are many different types of leukaemia, which are defined according to the immune cells they affect and how the disease progresses.
For all types combined, 9,900 people in the UK were diagnosed with leukaemia in 2015, Cancer Research UK statistics reveal.
And in the US, around 60,300 people were told they had the disease last year, according to the National Cancer Institute.
Most cases have no obvious cause, with the cancer not being contagious or inherited.
Leukaemia generally becomes more common with age – the exception being acute lymphoblastic leukemia, which peaks in children.
Other risk factors include being male, exposed to certain chemicals or radiation, and some bone-marrow disorders.
Symptoms are generally vague and get worse over time.
These can include:
- Tiredness
- Frequent infections
- Sweats
- Bruising
- Heavy periods, nose bleeds or bleeding gums
- Palpitations
- Shortness of breath
Acute leukaemia – which progresses rapidly and aggressively – is often curable via chemo, radiotherapy or a stem cell transplant.
Chronic forms of the disease – which typically progress slowly – tend to incurable, however, these patients can often live with the disease.
Source: Leukaemia Care
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