A young woman has been given a “second chance at life” after undergoing Britain's first-ever liver transplant for advanced bowel cancer.
Bianca Perea refused to accept that prolonging her life was the only option when she was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer, which had spread to her liver.
“I don't want to sound ignorant or arrogant or anything like that, but I just didn't feel like that was going to be it,” the 32-year-old trainee lawyer from Manchester said of the case. moment she heard her poor prognosis.
After the transplant, targeted drug treatment and chemotherapy, Ms Perea now has no signs of cancer in her body.
Mrs Perea refused to believe there would be no cure for her cancer (Phil Tragen/The Christie NHS Foundation Trust/PA)
When she first visited her GP in Wigan for constipation and bloating, she was referred to the local hospital, where high blood levels were discovered in her stool.
Ms Perea was 29 when she was told in November 2021 that she had stage four bowel cancer – the most serious form – despite having “no bad symptoms at all”.
After the colonoscopy, a doctor said her prognosis was not good. “He said, 'We're looking at prolonging your life rather than healing.' And I just remember everything slowing down,” Ms Perea told PA.
Although she accepted the diagnosis, Ms Perea refused to accept that the outlook was so bleak. When her mother asked about a possible transplant, doctors said this would not be a viable treatment.
Ms Perea was referred to the local Christie NHS Foundation Trust treatment center in December that year, where she underwent 37 rounds of a targeted drug called panitumumab over two and a half years, in addition to chemotherapy.
The strong response to treatment allowed her to undergo surgery to remove the intestinal tumor in May 2023, but the tumors in her liver remained and were inoperable.
With the cancer in her intestines removed, doctors began looking into liver transplants for the liver tumor. After being added to the transplant list in February 2024, Ms Perea found a donor and underwent surgery at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust last summer.
Doctors hope the cancer will not return after the liver transplant (Phil Tragen/The Christie NHS Foundation Trust/PA)
“Within four weeks of going under the knife, I was able to drive and walk the family dogs, it was absolutely incredible,” she said. “To go from being told I only have a short time to live to now being cancer-free is the greatest gift.
“I have been given a second chance in life and I am going to grab it with both hands. I am so grateful to the family who agreed to donate their loved one's liver. I truly believe this is a cure. Of course, they always hesitate to say that, but I am currently cancer-free.”
Dr. Kalena Marti, Mrs Perea's oncologist at Christie, said: “It's great to see that Bianca has had such a positive outcome. When we looked at the tumor cells in her liver after they were removed, they were not active.
“This is excellent news and we hope it means the cancer will not come back.
“Thanks to the generosity of organ donors and their loved ones, we now have access to liver transplants for some patients, which is fantastic.”
Dr. Ian Rowe, honorary consultant hepatologist at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “We are obviously indebted to the organ donor's family – as Bianca's case makes clear, organ donation saves lives.
“It is important that people register their decision to donate on the NHS Organ Donor Register and make their decision known to their loved ones. Families will always be consulted in decisions regarding organ donation.”
Ms Perea is looking forward to going on holiday this year and is working on improving her fitness.
“My liver is doing really well,” she said. “I'm getting tests for that, and I've just had my second scan and it's all clear, so it's really good.”
