Strictly Come Dancing star Amy Dowden has recalled suffering a terrifying near-death experience during her ongoing treatment for cancer.
The pro dancer, 33, revealed earlier this year that she had been diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer.
She’s since undergone a single mastectomy and is now having chemotherapy after doctors sadly found more tumours, which has also forced her out of Strictly 2023.
Amy has been keeping her fans updated on social media, including a recent clip of her bravely shaving her head after suffering from devastating hair loss.
In a new interview, Amy has now revealed she came close to dying during her chemotherapy treatment, saying: ‘After both my first cycles I developed the life-threatening side-effects that can come with chemo, so I had it all in the first month.’
She continued: ‘I had a temperature and didn’t realise the severity of having a temperature.
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a webbrowser thatsupports HTML5video
‘I stood up, collapsed, Mum rang the emergency number and they said “phone an ambulance immediately”. From there everything got very serious.’
Amy went on to The Mirror: ‘I remember going into hospital and them telling me I had an infection, but the following day it got very bad, I was unresponsive to antibiotics for hours.
‘My last memory is a load of doctors around me in the early hours of Sunday morning. On Monday a nurse explained I had gone into septic shock.
‘They said my blood pressure was that low my vital organs would have started failing.’
Amy, who is unable to recall much from the time she spent in intensive care, continued to explain that she had a low heart rate and ‘severely’ low blood pressure, while her infection markers were at ‘dangerous levels’.
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a webbrowser thatsupports HTML5video
After trying to be treated with three different kinds of antibiotics, Amy finally responded to the third type.
She was later told that if she had gone to bed that night instead of being rushed to hospital, she may not have woken up the next morning.
Amy has previously spoken about suffering from sepsis, saying: ‘I didn’t want to go into hospital; at the time I didn’t realise how ill I was.’
‘The doctors and nurses were telling me I had sepsis and that it was life-threatening, but I wasn’t taking it in,’ she added.
In a recent update on social media, Amy celebrated being through the halfway mark of her chemotherapy as she prepared for round 5.
She later marked an emotional return to Strictly Come Dancing for a special performance, as she thanked her co-stars for their ongoing support.
She wrote: ‘I’m so lucky to be surrounded by so much support which I don’t take for granted and days like here is what keeps me going.
‘I’m dreaming every night of dancing on that floor again but right now I’m my fellow pro’s proudest and biggest cheerleader.’
Strictly Come Dancing returns on Saturday at 6.20pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
Macmillan cancer support
If you or someone you care about has been diagnosed with cancer, Macmillan can offer support and information.
You can contact their helpline on 0808 808 00 00 (7 days a week from 8am to 8pm), use their webchat service, or visit their site for more information.
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us [email protected], calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
Source: Read Full Article