I WANT YOU TO KNOW WHAT'S IN MY KNICKERS

Jo Pyke, 49, is determined to raise awareness of vulva cancer

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Dashing to the toilet, I winced as a burning sensation shot between my legs. It was April 2022, and I'd been having issues down below for a while. A history of heavy bleeding, fibroids and polyps had led to a hysterectomy two years earlier, but while I'd hoped that would be the end of my troubles, now, aged 45, my GP had told me I was menopausal. Recently, my bits were constantly sore, itchy and dry, but one symptom in particular was driving me crazy.

‘It’s like passing razor blades,’ I said to my partner Jef, then 54, as I came out of the bathroom. We'd been together for five years and he was so understanding, especially when I told him I couldn't face getting intimate.

I said. The pain came and went, so I powered through, even when my symptoms bothered me while I was at work. For the past 13 years, I'd been a cancer counsellor, discussing all different types of the disease and helping patients navigate their feelings after diagnosis. But in between sessions, I kept having to rush to the loo, wincing as another painful wee trickled out.

‘Perhaps it’s a UTI,’ the doctor suggested when I made a telephone appointment. I'd suspected it might be, so I was pleased when he prescribed antibiotics, and when the symptoms petered out again, I just tried to forget about it until the next flareup.

ROMANTIC GESTURE

In December 2022, Jef gave me the perfect distraction when he took me on a trip to Amsterdam and got down on one knee.

he asked in a packed church, and as I accepted, I felt so happy and excited for the future.