Doctors mistook cancer symptoms for depression and menopause in woman for two years

Karen Tate, a resident of the UK, started experiencing flu-like symptoms that turned out to be cancer. Her story was shared by People magazine. According to the 57-year-old woman, she initially had fever, pain, sweating, and fatigue. A few weeks after the first signs of illness, her vision became blurry, making it difficult to focus or look at bright light, even to lift her head. ‘I developed heightened sensitivity to smells and noise, and gradually my legs started hurting so badly that I was bedridden. One day I went to bed and didn’t get up for two years,’ the Briton said. For two years, doctors mistook the worrying symptoms Tate was experiencing for fibromyalgia, and later for depression and menopause. It was only in November 2024, during a routine MRI scan due to her past vaginal cancer, that a brain tumor—meningioma—was discovered. In February 2025, surgeons performed a successful operation to remove most of the neoplasm. Biopsy results revealed it was benign. Tate now undergoes regular check-ups to monitor the tumor’s growth.