Woman, 33, whose face was rebuilt to remove cancer from her skull has now lost her right eye and cheekbone after disease returned while she was trapped abroad due to Covid

  • Jen Taylor, a writer from north London, first discovered a lump in her face in 2017
  • Turned out to be osteosarcoma and she had surgery to remove the cancer
  • Had face rebuilt using shoulder bone and back muscle during 16-hour operation
  • Cancer returned when she was stuck in Australia visiting family and missed scan 
  • Had to have reconstruction work removed to save her life from second bout 

A cancer survivor who had her face rebuilt has now had the reconstruction work removed to save her life from a second bout of the disease - after it returned while she was trapped abroad due to Covid.

Jen Taylor, a writer from north London, first discovered a lump in her face during an outing to Ascot, when she noticed her face looked different in photos.

The 33-year-old, originally from Sydney, Australia, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a form of bone cancer, and underwent surgery to remove the lump.

Her face was then successfully rebuilt using her shoulder bone - but just 18 months later, after Jen was trapped abroad by Covid and missed her regular scans, she discovered last October that her cancer was back.

Jen Taylor, a writer from north London, had her face rebuilt to cure her cancer but has since had the reconstruction work removed to save her life from a second bout of the disease - after it returned when she missed her regular scans while trapped abroad due to Covid

Jen Taylor, a writer from north London, had her face rebuilt to cure her cancer but has since had the reconstruction work removed to save her life from a second bout of the disease - after it returned when she missed her regular scans while trapped abroad due to Covid

Jen took regular photos of herself during her recovery so she could track how her face has changed since her original operation

Jen took regular photos of herself during her recovery so she could track how her face has changed since her original operation

Now she has had all her original reconstruction work taken out, and has also lost her right cheekbone and her right eye. But Jen has maintained her optimistic outlook and is grateful her body is 'working hard to keep me alive'.

She said: 'The first time around, I was quite worried about how I was going to look but this time, I felt a lot closer to dying. I didn't care what they removed, I just wanted to live.'

Reflecting on what she has been through, she said: 'I was very level-headed about my first diagnosis. I was scared, of course, but felt ready to take it on.

'I remember being worried that I'd look different after surgery, which I did, but now I just feel grateful to be alive.

Jen first discovered a lump in her face during an outing to Ascot, when she noticed her face looked different in photos
Jen first discovered a lump in her face during an outing to Ascot, when she noticed her face looked different in photos

Jen first discovered a lump in her face during an outing to Ascot (left), when she noticed her face looked different in photos (also pictured right before)

'When the cancer came back for a second time, it felt like I was a lot closer to death.

'The surgeries and chemotherapy have been a lot to deal with but I just have to find a way to get through it.'

It was back in May 2017 that Jen first discovered a lump on her face. She recalled: 'I was at the Ascot Racecourse one of the first times I really noticed it. 

'I remember thinking my face looked weird in photos and I tried to pose in a way so that you couldn't see the lump.

'It was small, just above my top teeth, behind my nose. It didn't hurt but I went to the dentist to get it checked out.'

Pictured in hospital before surgery, Jen told how the lump didn't hurt but she went to the dentist to get it checked out, which he thought was an abscess. She was eventually referred to a specialist and attended an appointment at St Thomas's Hospital in London

Pictured in hospital before surgery, Jen told how the lump didn't hurt but she went to the dentist to get it checked out, which he thought was an abscess. She was eventually referred to a specialist and attended an appointment at St Thomas's Hospital in London

After a biopsy and a series of tests, Jen was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in August 2017 (pictured after her first surgery)

After a biopsy and a series of tests, Jen was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in August 2017 (pictured after her first surgery)

Jen's dentist thought the lump was an abscess and, over the following few weeks, she returned back and forth as he tried to remove parts of it.

'Eventually, I'd had enough,' she said. 

Referred to a specialist, Jen attended an appointment at St Thomas's Hospital in London.

'The man examining me took one look,' she explained. 'And he said it definitely wasn't an abscess.

'I knew at the point it wasn't going to be fun. Some people are tempted to jump on Google but I stopped myself, I didn't want to think about it.'

After a biopsy and a series of tests, Jen was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in August 2017.

Jen, pictured with her father after surgery, told how her relationship broke down due to her illness because it all got 'too much' for her partner

Jen, pictured with her father after surgery, told how her relationship broke down due to her illness because it all got 'too much' for her partner

Jen said: 'I got the news and I immediately rang my boyfriend. I told him I wasn't going to work and he left his work to meet me at a rooftop bar.

'I guess I felt the bad news deserved a nice spot to mull it over. I'm quite a logical person so after the initial upset, I tried to stay hopeful about the situation.

'I was referred to University College London Hospital and within a few days I was speaking to an oncologist.'

At the time, Jen was a product manager for an airline security company but was unable to work as she underwent chemotherapy to fight the cancer.

'My relationship broke down due to my illness, I think it just too much for him in the end,' she said. 'He got me through the worst of the chemo but left before my surgery.'

At the time, Jen was a product manager for an airline security company but was unable to work as she underwent chemotherapy (pictured during) to fight the cancer

At the time, Jen was a product manager for an airline security company but was unable to work as she underwent chemotherapy (pictured during) to fight the cancer

Doctors used part of Jen's shoulder blade to replace the bone in her face and fitted her for prosthetic teeth. Pictured: her photo diary of her recovery

Doctors used part of Jen's shoulder blade to replace the bone in her face and fitted her for prosthetic teeth. Pictured: her photo diary of her recovery

In March 2018, Jen went through surgery to remove the cancerous lump from her face.

Surgeons cut out most of Jen's top jaw and cut a hole through the roof of her mouth to cut away as much of the tumour as they could. In the process, most of Jen's top teeth also had to be removed.

'It took a lot time for them to put me back together again,' she explained. 'For months after, I was going back and forth for reconstruction surgery.'

Doctors used part of Jen's shoulder blade to replace the bone in her face and fitted her for prosthetic teeth.

She said: 'It would have been impossible for them to get all of the tissue out that they needed to so I had to go for scans every three months to make sure it didn't rear its head again and for the following two years, everything always came back clear.'

In late 2019, Jen decided to take a three-month holiday to Sydney, Australia, to visit family but, due to the pandemic, she was trapped there for 10 months.

In the weeks after her treatment Ms Taylor's hair started to grow back and the swelling went down

In the weeks after her treatment Ms Taylor's hair started to grow back and the swelling went down

Ms Taylor lost all but six of her top teeth in the operation, and tried implants to restore her mouth to normal – pictured trialling teeth implants

Ms Taylor lost all but six of her top teeth in the operation, and tried implants to restore her mouth to normal – pictured trialling teeth implants

In late 2019, Jen decided to take a three-month holiday to Sydney, Australia, to visit family but, due to the pandemic, she was trapped there for 10 months and missed her regular scans (pictured with her new teeth after her first surgery)

In late 2019, Jen decided to take a three-month holiday to Sydney, Australia, to visit family but, due to the pandemic, she was trapped there for 10 months and missed her regular scans (pictured with her new teeth after her first surgery)

'I hadn't expected to be gone so long,' she explained. 'I asked my surgeons in the UK if I needed to continue my regular scans in Australia but they assured me everything was fine.'

During the 10 months away from the UK, all of Jen's scheduled scans were missed.

She continued: 'By September 2020, I had started to feel a new pain in my face and I pushed the doctors to refer me for an MRI.'

The head scan resulted in specialists sending Jen for further tests.

She said: 'They confirmed to me that the cancer was back. In my first scan it had shown up like a tiny speck but by the second one at the end of October, the mass had grown quite significantly.

'It had been caught just as it had started growing, so the universe was helping me out there.'

Days after returning to London, Jen was rushed for surgery. Just two weeks after her new diagnosis, she went under the knife again, with surgeons taking out the reconstruction work, her right cheekbone and her right eye.

Days after returning to London, Jen was rushed for surgery. Just two weeks after her new diagnosis, she went under the knife again, with surgeons taking out the reconstruction work, her right cheekbone and her right eye

Days after returning to London, Jen was rushed for surgery. Just two weeks after her new diagnosis, she went under the knife again, with surgeons taking out the reconstruction work, her right cheekbone and her right eye

She said: 'I wanted them to just take whatever they needed to but I didn't find out I'd lose my eye until three days before the operation.

WHAT IS SARCOMA? 

Sarcomas are uncommon types of cancer which can grow anywhere in the body – on muscle, bone, tendons, blood vessels and fatty tissue.

Bone sarcomas are rare and affect approximately 670 people per year – but there are other types of bone cancers.

There are around 100 different types of sarcomas and about 5,300 people are year are diagnosed with them in the UK.

Sarcomas can be treated well if people catch them early, but many people do not get diagnosed until their tumours are about the size of a tin of beans.

Only slightly more than half of people with sarcomas (55 per cent) survive for five years or more after their diagnosis.

Symptoms of sarcomas can include bone pain, swellings or lumps, and restricted movement if it is growing near a joint.

Treatment may involve typical cancer therapies such as surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy. 

Source: Sarcoma UK 

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'It was a shock but I knew I'd still have sight in my left eye so I felt I could cope with it.

'I cried for a few seconds but then I thought about a TV show I'm watching called The Magicians. My favourite character loses her eye and wears an eye patch. She looks so cool; if she can do it, so can I.'

Now Jen is recovering from the procedure and is currently waiting for more reconstruction surgery.

'They've placed a temporary plastic plate where the roof of my mouth was,' she said. 'It's easy access for them while they assess whether any more tissue needs cutting away.

'My eye is sealed shut and I'm not sure yet if or when I'll start the work to get a false eye fitted. I have plastic teeth too, it'll be a while before I get proper ones fitted again.'

And she added: 'It's an ongoing process with many ups and down, but I try to stay as optimistic as possible. That's definitely helped me to get through it so far.

'I guess I'm now used to having to sit in uncertainty. So I'm at peace with finding out things when I need to.

'Things could be easier but they could also be a lot worse. I'm grateful for my friends and family, they've been my support network.

'I look a lot different now but that's OK. My body is working hard to keep me alive and whatever changes I need to go through to make that happen I'll deal with. I'm determined to enjoy my life.'

Follow Jen's journey at www.thecancerchronicles.blog

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