A former nurse who was given a year to live when she was diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer is now free of the disease after pioneering surgery at the hospital where she worked.
Caroline Ainslie, 60, had a ‘shock’ stage four diagnosis in March this year after feeling fatigued and not fully recovering from a winter chest infection.
After undergoing tests, she was informed the cancer had spread to multiple areas and her only treatment option would be three initial rounds of chemotherapy, with a view to simply extending her life rather than cure her of cancer.
Mrs Ainslie said learning that she was dying from an inoperable cancer was ‘a bolt out of the blue’.
She had been active just weeks earlier, going on a skiing holiday, walking her dog with her wife, and even taking part in a 10-mile running race.
However, her response to treatment exceeded expectations, significantly reducing the disease and enabling her to undergo surgery using a pioneering treatment.
The procedure, known as hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy, or HIPEC, involves surgically removing cancerous tumours, then delivering heated chemotherapy in liquid form directly into the body.
Mrs Ainslie, from Southampton, Hants, is now cancer-free thanks to the treatment at University Hospital Southampton (UHS) – the very same hospital where she was a head of nursing.
Former nurse Caroline Ainslie, 60, from Southampton, Hants, as a patient at University Hospital Southampton.
Caroline Ainslie with wife Katie and dog Nellie.
She said: ‘Being told I had cancer was like a bolt out of the blue.
‘I hadn’t been feeling myself which prompted me to get checked, but to be told that I had inoperable ovarian cancer and that it had spread everywhere was such a shock.
‘I was lucky enough to retire at 55 and was living life to the full with my wife Katie and our dog Nellie.
‘I had taken part in the Great South Run just months before, had been on a recent skiing holiday and had been looking forward to an upcoming cycling holiday to Japan that was just weeks away.’
Ovarian cancer is often called a ‘silent killer’ because its early signs, such as persistent bloating and pelvic or abdominal pain, are vague and easily mistaken for common digestive or menstrual issues.
These symptoms are often subtle and can progress before a definitive diagnosis is made.
It is the sixth most common cancer in women, with around 7,500 women diagnosed in the UK each year.
Around two-thirds of cases are diagnosed at a late stage, when treatment options can be more limited, and the disease claims more than 4,000 lives annually.
The pioneering HIPEC surgery taking place at University Hospital Southampton NHS Trust.
Since establishing its HIPEC service in 2022, UHS has become a national leader in the treatment, recently completing its 50th procedure for ovarian cancer, placing it among the most experienced centres in the UK.
Mr David Constable-Phelps, gynaecological oncology surgeon at UHS, introduced HIPEC for ovarian cancer at UHS and led the team who carried out Mrs Ainslie’s surgery.
He said: ‘This was a highly complex case.
‘By the time Caroline’s cancer was diagnosed, it was very advanced and had spread to multiple areas, including the abdominal wall, diaphragm, liver and bowel.
‘Remarkably, she responded so well to chemotherapy that surgery, which had initially not been possible, became a viable option.
‘During surgery, we discovered the tumour on the liver and diaphragm was also stuck to Caroline’s right lung.’
She underwent a complex 12-hour operation, during which surgeons were able to remove all visible cancer.
The procedure included a full hysterectomy and the removal of tumours from the lining of her abdomen, liver, diaphragm, lungs, lymph nodes and colon, before HIPEC treatment was administered.
Mr Constable-Phelps with the HIPEC team at UHS, celebrating the 50th procedure at the Trust.
Mr Constable-Phelps added: ‘Our aim during surgery was to remove all visible signs of Caroline’s cancer and HIPEC was then used to target any microscopic disease that could not be seen with the naked eye.
‘HIPEC involves filling the abdomen with chemotherapy heated to 42 degrees and circulating it for 90 minutes at the end of the operation.
‘Caroline will now receive further intravenous chemotherapy to complete her treatment and she will continue to be monitored closely as part of her ongoing care.
‘At this point there is no visible evidence of cancer, and this was not an outcome we believed would be possible when Caroline was first diagnosed.’
The nurse said: ‘I feel incredibly fortunate that Southampton is my local hospital and that this specialist treatment was available to me.
‘My surgery wasn’t without its challenges and took longer than expected, as the team had to call in a thoracic surgeon when they discovered part of the cancer was stuck to my lung.
‘The past few months have been a whirlwind.
‘I went from being told my cancer was inoperable to responding so well to chemotherapy that surgery became possible.
‘Having the opportunity to undergo this treatment and have the cancer removed has given me real hope for the future.’
Mrs Ainslie is now recovering from surgery and will undergo two further rounds of chemotherapy, while continuing to be monitored closely as part of her follow-up care.
She continued: ‘I’m absolutely certain that being fit and healthy before my diagnosis helped me enormously, both in how I responded to chemotherapy and in recovering from surgery.
‘Alongside that, maintaining a positive mindset has helped me through some very difficult times and continues to motivate me as I work towards getting back to the active person I was before.’
