Mum and daughter receive 'devastating' diagnoses just months after doctors said it was menopause and asthma

A mother and daughter from Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, who were both diagnosed with thyroid cancer within months of each other, have said their symptoms were initially dismissed as menopause and asthma. Jessica Warrington, 31, and her mother Sarah Voy, 53, are now closer than ever after facing their health battles together.

Jessica experienced brain fog, mood swings, headaches, back pain, and exhaustion, which led doctors to suggest early menopause before her cancer diagnosis in September 2024. Sarah, who had been dealing with breathing difficulties and neck pain for years, was told she might have asthma until she received the same "devastating" diagnosis four months after her daughter.

Following neck surgeries to remove their tumours, Jessica has been declared cancer-free, while Sarah is waiting for her final results. The pair are advocating for others to seek second opinions on health issues.

Jessica, a healthcare worker, said: "It’s awful to be given this devastating news and then hear your mum has it too," adding: "I would’ve much preferred for me to have all the cancer and deal with it alone.

"My mum is my best friend, she is everything to me – going through this together, we support each other now more than ever."

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Sarah's troubles began in December 2019 when she started feeling unfit and breathless, eventually struggling to walk upstairs, leading her GP to prescribe an inhaler for what was thought to be asthma.

A fleshy lump then appeared on her throat and she started struggling to swallow food but her GP thought it was nothing serious. It was during a trip with friends to the city of Lincoln when Sarah started thinking "something was