Ovarian cancer and menopause at 19 mean I can't have kids, but it's changed me for the better

When Enlli Thompson's periods changed and she began experiencing excruciating pain at 19, she was told by doctors there was nothing wrong.

Her stomach issues and headaches were blamed on a bug or a urinary infection - even anxiety.

It was only after Enlli had further tests when a scan showed a cyst in her pelvis that the teenager from Caernarfon, Gwynedd, was given the devastating news she had ovarian cancer.

She would need a full hysterectomy to remove her womb, which would put her into immediate menopause, and means she is not able to have children.

"I used to be quiet and shy, but now I feel like I'm in a really good place," she said.

"My periods were changing, I was experiencing severe pain, but I was still being told I was fine," she said.

She described being "completely at a loss" and felt like she was "losing the plot".

But the pain became too much, and she visited A&E at Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor.

Scans revealed what was believed to be a cyst in her pelvic area, and she was placed on a medical plan to carefully monitor her condition, while continuing to work as a trainee mechanic.

She then received a call from the hospital to return for further scans, and admitted: "My mind went straight to cancer."

Her worst fears were confirmed, and she was told she had stage 3 ovarian cancer, , external which meant it had spread beyond the pelvis.

"Being told that I wouldn't be able to have my own children, I broke down and cried," she said.

But Enlli said: "In a strange way I was kind of relieved when they told me I had cancer.

"Just because then I had an answer, I had a treatment plan, I was going to get better."