Scunthorpe woman who had liver disease urges people to know the signs
She says it might not necessarily be down to alcohol intake
Last updated 10th Feb 2025
There's a warning people are putting themselves at risk because they're unaware of the signs of liver disease.
They include leg swelling and difficulty in stopping small bleeds.
Today we're hearing from a Scunthorpe woman who was diagnosed with it.
Belinda Whitlock says she was misdiagnosed at first which left her with multiple problems.
She's now working with healthcare teams to raise awareness of the condition.
I saw the British liver trust website and thank God I did as it literally saved my life
Belinda told us: "The nurse said to me that's probably the first thing most people say to me - they don't drink alcohol and that's a common misconception."
"There are so many reasons someone can have an unhealthy liver."
"I saw the British liver trust website and thank God I did as it literally saved my life."
"They put it down to the menopause and prescribed HRT."
"It turned out that because of the HRT I had a bit of bleeding and that warranted a referral for a gynaecological scan."
"It was that scan that picked up something on my liver."
"I'd had very vague symptoms - one of them being chronic fatigue."
"That was unusual for me."
I left the consultation and said to myself this has to change - this isn't acceptable
"I had a bit of pain in my right upper abdomen."
"Nothing that would warrant an emergency appointment with the doctor - but I knew something was wrong."
"I walked out of the consultation fuming because I didn't get any answers."
"I felt that he didn't really care - he didn't know what to do with me."
"I left the consultation and said to myself this has to change - this isn't acceptable."
"If I've experienced this I don't think I'm going to be the only one."