Teen who beat cancer vows to become a doctor to help others like her – Metro.co.uk

Ellie Waters beat devastating odds and is now on track to study medicine at uni (Picture: Mercury)

A teenager who beat cancer aged 14 has set out to become a doctor to help other young people battle the disease.

Ellie Waters, now 18, was given a 20 per cent chance of survival when she was diagnosed with Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare soft tissue cancer, in September 2015.

She had to spend a month in hospital followed by a gruelling 17 months of chemotherapy, which saw her spend three days every three weeks in the company of doctors.

Her experiences at The Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham sparked an ambition to join the profession.

Ellie said: Ive always been really career driven.

Originally I wanted to be the female version of Alan Sugar, but now Ive realised money isnt everything.

I never wanted to be a doctor before, but I found a passion for medicine watching my doctors when I was in hospital.

The teen, from Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, said she deliberately chose A Levels in biology, chemistry and maths so she can go onto study medicine next year and eventually become a paediatric oncologist.

She was 14 when she noticed a lump in her buttock but was too embarrassed to tell anyone and initially dismissed it as haemorrhoids.

A few weeks later she felt a pain in her leg during cross-country running and went to the GP, who rushed her to hospital to remove what was thought to be an abscess.

Ellie had to give up football and running after her diagnosis, but turned her energy to blogging and vlogging about her experiences instead.

She said having cancer brought her closer to her twin sister Olivia too.

We used to share a bedroom but we had to be separated because we argued so much.

Something like cancer makes you forget all the stupid stuff and embrace your differences and appreciate spending time together.

Everything was a competition before, competing to be the most popular twin but now, even though, were chalk and cheese, we like to spend time together.

Cancer also brought me a newfound confidence because when I spent time in hospital on my own, I had to become my own best friend.

Ellie was given the all clear in March 2017, to the delight of her parents and four other siblings.

But the chemotherapy has severely damaged her ovaries and uterus and forced her into early menopause.

She is also undergoing hormone replacement therapy to control her hot flushes, aches and tiredness.

She fears the reality of not being able to carry children will hit her harder in the future, as the joy of surviving cancer becomes a more distant memory. But she still sees a silver lining.

Now to have children adoption is my only option but Im happy about that. Ill feel like Im giving something back.

Having cancer completely changed me. I dont associate with the person I was before.

Even though cancer is terrible, Im glad it happened. It made me more mature and it brought me onto a new path.

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Teen who beat cancer vows to become a doctor to help others like her - Metro.co.uk