Film student who beat stage 4 blood cancer reveals early warning sign
Shell Rowe, a film and TV student from Essex, became a viral sensation after she started posting videos on TikTok about her cancer journey
A bald woman who beat stage 4 cancer has become a TikTok sensation by creating outrageous hairstyles and sharing “positivity” with almost 700,000 followers.
Shell Rowe, a film and TV student from Essex, became a viral sensation after she started posting videos on TikTok about her cancer journey.
The 23-year-old, who was first diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in August 2019 after a tennis ball-sized lump appeared in her neck, has relapsed three times but has been in remission since February 2022.
Shell, whose videos include funny clips of her sticking objects such as popcorn and glitter to her head, said: “I could not have gotten through my treatment without Teenage Cancer Trust so I wanted to do some kind of fundraiser or campaign to give back to them.
“My hairstyles videos have taken off on TikTok and I thought it was a great way to raise awareness, money and have some fun with it.
“Positivity through my videos is very important to me.”
Shell’s cancer journey began in August 2019 when a large lump appeared in her neck, accompanied by numerous other lumps, spurring her to go to the doctor.
“Looking back, there were other symptoms too, such as really bad fatigue and night sweats, but it wasn’t until I noticed the lumps that I went to my GP,” she said.
“I didn’t take it seriously at all – me and my family were laughing about it. It wasn’t until I got my diagnosis that I realised just how serious it was.”
Shell was diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin lymphoma which, according to the NHS, is a type of cancer that develops in the lymphatic system – a network of vessels and glands throughout the body.
“One of my first thoughts, when I heard the word cancer, was that I knew I was going to lose my hair,” she said.
“I worried about what I would look like without my hair and wondered how I could cope with even leaving the house without it.”
She went on: “I started chemo within a week of being diagnosed and before long my hair started falling out in clumps in the shower.
“It was really traumatic losing it because I ended up getting sepsis and a bowel infection and I was really unwell. I went into hospital as my hair first started falling out.
“When I was discharged a week later, I didn’t even go home, I went straight to the hairdressers and had it shaved off.”
She added: “I always recommend now that people shave their hair before it falls out because it gives you a little bit of control.”
Since the shave, Shell says she has grown to love her new look.
“I really like being bald now and having short hair, it’s a huge part of who I am,” she said.
She added: “I’m hoping through my videos, I can help other people experience that same self-acceptance.”
It was not until March 2020, when Shell’s cancer relapsed that she started to document her experiences on TikTok.
“As a film and TV student, it’s in me to want to tell stories – that’s always how I’ve dealt with things – so making videos became my way of coping,” she said.
Shell began posting regularly on her account and was shocked by the overwhelming response from viewers.
“I still remember the first time one of my videos blew up,” she said.
“It was a storytime video about being at a Macmillan Cancer Centre.”
She added: “I was sat with my girlfriend when I posted it and we watched it get 100 likes within the first 10 minutes and we were so excited.
“I was just so shocked and it was the first time I saw strangers commenting that they were going through a similar thing to me.
“I feel like I’ve found my own community through TikTok.”
Shell relapsed again in June 2021 and, undergoing further treatment on a clinical trial, she went into remission in October 2021, but relapsed for a third time just two months later.
In February 2022, she had a stem cell transplant and has been in remission since then.
Now she is raising awareness with Teenage Cancer Trust by posting videos of silly hairstyles on her TikTok.
“Making positive videos is just part of how I reframe my life and chose to look at things,” she said.
“If you trick your brain into thinking things aren’t that bad then things really won’t seem so bad. You have to fake laugh until you start really laughing.
“Every time I’ve gotten bad news, I ask myself how I can process it and deal with it so that it works in my favour.”
For Shell, Teenage Cancer Trust is close to her heart.
“My support co-ordinator, Marlies, and Tom at University College London Hospital were massive supports for me on my journey,” she said.
“Marlies was there for me from the moment of my second diagnosis, regularly checking on me and bringing me activities, making sure I had things like a PlayStation, arts and crafts, and introducing me to people.”
She added: “I genuinely could not have gone through the treatment without her.
“There have been times when I’ve been alone in hospital and people don’t understand the difference that organisations like Teenage Cancer Trust make.
“This campaign is my way of giving back to them.”