I broke my leg ...then was told that I had bone cancer

A TEESSIDE woman discovered she had cancer after breaking her leg on a date.

- By JADE MCELWEE

Amy Newton fractured her right femur in two places while on a date indoor climbing in January last year.

What she thought was a painful accident turned out to be the start of a life-changing journey.

The 36-year-old said: “I probably shouldn't have gone on that date because my leg hadn't felt right for a few months.

“It felt like a pulled muscle, but if I hadn't climbed that wall and fractured my leg, I’d never have discovered the tumour in the bone. But one thing's certain, no matter how much I try to forget that date, I never will because it probably saved my life.”

While in A&E, Amy, from Middlesbrough, expected a broken bone - instead X-rays revealed the bone was cracked in two places and something else had showed up on the image and she needed to go for an MRI.

Later that night, with her best friend by her side, Amy found out the MRI had discovered a tumour on her bone and that it had caused the bone to weaken, meaning any weight put on her leg could cause it to snap.

Amy said: “When they said it was a tumour I couldn't breathe. I kept saying you've got the wrong person.

“It's not me you need to be talking to. To say I was heartbroken and devastated is an understatement.”

Amy had to stay in hospital that night, and wouldn't leave for the next two weeks, and she began to share the devastating news with her close family and friends.

Amy said: “Telling my parents and close family and friends was the hardest part, especially as I knew it would turn their lives upside down. My mum was living in Fuerteventura and had to drop everything to fly home.”

On February 15, last year, biopsies confirmed Amy had osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer. She began a combination of chemotherapy known as MAP, which destroys quickly-dividing cancer cells.

A day before chemotherapy was due to start, Amy had a freak accident in a park when getting some fresh air with a friend.