‘Dismissive’ GP receptionists ‘refused to let me see a physician twice’ – now I’ve been advised I might solely have six months to stay

A mother-of-two who was refused appointments by two different GP receptionists has revealed the shock moment she was given as little as six months left to live after discovering she was living with one of the deadliest cancers.

Sibylle Schwarz, a software engineer from Germany who lives in the town of Leyland, Lancashire, did not think twice when she developed what she thought was a common cold in early 2022. 

With a young daughter and infant son, she assumed she had picked up a nursery bug from one of them. 

She trusted her symptoms would eventually pass, but started to have serious concerns after they persisted for several months.

Nearly a year after first getting ill, the parent, 40, found out her cough was not a winter cold but a symptom of something far worse – she had oesophageal cancer and six to 12 months to live. 

Ms Schwarz only found out about her diagnosis after have to battle past two GP receptionists to see a doctor as they would not take her seriously.

On the first occasion, the receptionist was dismissive, refused to book her an appointment and just sent to get anti-sickness tablets from the pharmacy – despite her not being able to swallow. 

Two weeks later, Ms Schwarz went back, only to be told to just go to the pharmacy again – forcing her to beg for an appointment with the GP. 

Following a series of further delays, it took a further four months for the mother-of-two to get the test she needed – when it was discovered she had one of the least survivable cancers. 

She said: ‘I went back to the GP in June and there was a different receptionist. But she also said to go to the pharmacy. I told her I really, really needed to see a doctor and she booked me in for an appointment. 

‘The GP talked to me a little bit and then agreed to send me to have an endoscopy, just to be sure.

‘She put me down on a waiting list and I got a call from that department two months later because I wasn’t listed as urgent.

‘But by that point, I already couldn’t swallow food.’

As Ms Schwarz was still breastfeeding her baby son, she could not be sedated to have an endoscopy – which led to the procedure, which involves a camera being inserted inside the body for internal analysis, being delayed further until the end of October.

‘I lost 25 kilos within those four months,’ she recalled. ‘I was in a very bad state. I couldn’t eat. I was losing my hair. My iron level was very, very low. 

‘The surgeon told me they wouldn’t have put me down for an endoscopy if I hadn’t lost so much weight. They didn’t believe me when I said I couldn’t eat any food.

‘Then after the endoscopy, the surgeon apologised for being so presumptuous and told me the news that I had cancer. She discovered it was quite advanced, and that I might have only six to 12 months to live.’

What once looked like a winter cold had turned into a diagnosis for one of the least survivable of all cancers. She said: ‘I didn’t know that the cough was a symptom.’ 

Because symptoms of oesophageal cancer like a chronic cough are so vague and generic – and are frequently mistaken for heartburn or other stomach issues – opportunities for early diagnosis are often missed. 

This can be disastrous for patients. Sadly, less than 20 per cent of people diagnosed with oesophageal cancer in the UK will survive for more than five years. 

And the number of cases of the disease is higher in the UK than most of Europe, according to Digestive Cancers Europe data, analysed by Action Against Heartburn for Oesophageal Cancer Awareness Month.  

The UK has 14.2 oesophageal cancer cases per 100,000 people – versus 3.5 in Italy, 4.4 in Spain, 7.0 in France and 7.7 in Germany, figures showed. 

It is one of the least survivable of all cancers.  

Ms Schwarz described how she felt when she received her diagnosis: ‘I was just completely shocked.’ 

Diagnosed a day before her daughter’s seventh birthday, she added: ‘The first thought I had was that I would not see her turning eight.’ 

Ms Schwarz said: ‘My father died of pancreatic cancer. So, I had heard about that, and how dangerous it is. And I knew that there are different kinds of cancer but I had not heard of oesophagus cancer. 

‘Of course, as soon as I came home, I Googled it and saw that it’s quite bad.’

The seriousness of her condition meant she was fast-tracked for scans as soon as her tumour was found.

Her treatment began six weeks after she was diagnosed, with four rounds of chemotherapy to shrink the growth to prepare for surgery. 

But in a heartbreaking turn, Ms Schwarz’s treatment was not working: ‘Unfortunately, the chemotherapy wasn’t really helpful.’ 

She explained: ‘It did shrink the tumour in the beginning, and I could eat a little bit, but then it just grew again. I needed a feeding tube, and I couldn’t even swallow water anymore. 

‘The surgeon had an appointment with me and discussed all the outcomes of the scans. She was very pessimistic and said she was unsure if she could take it out through surgery. 

‘I said, ‘If you can’t, then just close me up again, and that’s fine. I want you to try. I’d rather die than not try.’ And she did, and luckily, she could take it all out.’ 

More than two years on from being told she may only have six months to live, Ms Schwarz is adjusting to life after a surgery she was warned may not work – and even got married in December 2022, only two months after her diagnosis. 

She said, ‘I feel fine now’, explaining: ‘I can eat most things again, smaller portions, of course, but I have energy. I can take care of my kids. 

‘I’m turning 40 this year. It’s in the middle of half term so maybe I will go away for a week or something.’ 

She also got married in December 2022.  

After her ordeal, the Lancashire woman is just grateful for every day: ‘Yesterday, I had a talk with someone, and he asked me, ‘What is your five-year plan?” As a cancer patient, you don’t really like to think ahead so far. 

‘In five years, my son will be eight, my daughter, oh God, will be in the middle of puberty. It would be great if life would just not change, just everything stays as it is, everybody will be healthy.

‘During treatment, I only thought about my kids. My daughter had already gone through a lot. 

‘We had a bit of a rough start in her life and then we moved from Germany to Lancashire so she lost all her friends. I didn’t want her to lose her mother, too. I was always thinking about that. 

‘And then, of course, there was my son, who was only a baby and was a very, very great sunshine in my life. They helped me to survive.’

With awareness of oesophageal cancer comparatively low compared to other types, Ms Schwarz hoped her story helps others get the treatment they need sooner rather than later.

Her advice to fellow patients? ‘Certainly push a bit more.’ 

She said: ‘You always have to be the bad patient and you always have to push. I was never that person. I always waited my turn. 

‘Of course, you have to be polite, but you have to push and advocate for yourself. And if I would have known that, then that might have led to me being diagnosed faster.’

The parent is endlessly thankful to the surgeon who saved her: ‘I am very grateful to my surgeon.’ 

Ms Schwarz added: ‘Even though she was pessimistic and not convinced that she could help, she did listen to me at the end and more importantly her skills and determination saved my life. 

‘I will never stop thanking her for that.’

The software engineer now runs a monthly cancer support group, which she started in August 2023. 

She commented in a post on a local Facebook group advertising the meet-ups: ‘I am no charity, NHS or other official organisation. I just want to offer a safe space for everybody who needs it.’