Mum-of-four dies of cervical cancer after deemed 'too young to have smear test and sent home with painkillers'
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Relatives of a mum-of-four who died of cervical cancer say she wasn't offered a smear test despite her painful symptoms and a family history of the disease.
They said Sadie Blackston, 25, was deemed too young for a routine test, but they believe her cancer would have been caught earlier if she had been given one.
Despite a history of cervical cancer on her mum's side of the family, she was not offered a smear test and instead was sent home with painkillers, her sister claimed.
After the initial diagnosis Sadie underwent chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment but was later told the cancer had spread and was terminal.
(Photo: SWNS)
She sadly died on February 7 at her mum Leanne Limes' home, where she grew up, surrounded by family and friends.
She leaves behind children Morgan, 7, Kenzie, 5, Ellisia, 4, and Harvey, 2.
Her sister Lizzie Blackston, 23, said Sadie, who previously lived in Gravesend, Kent, will never be forgotten.
Lizzie said: "She was a lovely person and a very loving mum, sister, daughter, auntie and friend.
"Everyone loved Sadie. I'm lost for words to be honest. We are all devastated, ripped apart."
Lizzie said Sadie had visited her GP three or four times complaining of pain and bleeding but was not offered a smear test.
She was finally diagnosed after she collapsed and had to be rushed to hospital .
(Photo: SWNS)
The current age when women start having regular smear tests is 25 but many people, including Lizzie, feel it should be lowered.
Lizzie said: "She was having a lot of pain and bleeding, and we told her GP that she needed a smear test but she just kept getting sent away.
"By the fourth visit they decided she could have some tests but it was too late - she was rushed to hospital and they found the tumour.
"They managed to shrink the tumour and she had chemotherapy and internal radiation but they couldn't remove it.
"The cancer spread to her bowel and she had it operated on but she went downhill.
"She was given less than a year to live in November but it was too late. The cancer would definitely have been caught earlier if she had been given a smear test.
"The age should be lowered to 16 because that's when you can legally have sex."
(Photo: SWNS)
Although the family knew Sadie's cancer was terminal, Lizzie said they were not prepared for how quickly she deteriorated in the final few days.
On the day Sadie died a nurse visited her and told Leanne, 42, that if any family or friends wanted to say goodbye they should do it that day as she was unlikely to make it through the night.
All the family and some close friends gathered at the home and Sadie died at 9.40pm.
Her loved ones are now raising money to give Sadie the funeral and burial she helped plan, and they are hoping to raise £2,000.
Earlier in the year family and friends raised more than £1,000 so Sadie could take her four children on a trip to Disneyland and create happy memories.
Tragically, she was too ill to make the trip.
Lizzie said: "She spent the money wisely on things for the children. When they went to visit her she had gifts for them."