Tess Skullan’s scar after cervical cancer is a cruel reminder she’ll never conceive

An Adelaide woman has been dealt a cruel blow after discovering she was suffering with cervical cancer for years, having ignored an irregular PAP smear result.

Tess Skullan, 35, at home in Adelaide, while undergoing treatment for cervical and uterine cancer. Picture: Matt Loxton

Tess Skullan isn’t angry, she’s really sad.

She’s sad because she will never be pregnant, likely never even conceive her own children and never know the joys of motherhood in the way she’s always imagined.

The Osteria Oggi restaurant worker had been living, for at least five years, with cervical and uterine cancer and didn’t know it.

“It’s huge impostor syndrome because I’ve been sick for so long, I just felt … normal, I feel like this is fake,” she said.

It had been four years since Tess’ latest PAP smear came back with irregular results. The hospitality worker never went back for further tests and only had another smear in October last year.

The results showed the 35-year-old had precancerous cells and would need to wait a year to have a LLETZ procedure to remove them.

When she finally underwent the procedure in October this year doctors discovered those cells were actually cancerous.

Tess Skullan, 35, was diagnosed with cervical cancer and now cannot have her own children. Picture: Supplied

Tess underwent a radical hysterectomy. Picture: Supplied

On November 21 she underwent a radical hysterectomy where doctors found the stage three cancer had spread to her lymph nodes.

“It really put into perspective what it means to be a woman, losing one of the most feminine things,” Tess, who also suffered a head injury when she was 19, said.

“Straight after it was just sadness, it was just lost … it was an awful, awful time.”

The procedure left her with a large scar over her abdomen.

“I wouldn’t consider myself vain … but having this huge scar … it’s a forever reminder,” she said.

“Not having ownership over your body anymore … not having the autonomy to be in charge of whether you have a scar or not.”

What made her experience much harder to grapple with was the fact Tess never had a chance to have children.

“Finally … it’s the time where you can make decisions and then you can’t pick any, it’s made for you,” she said.

“I haven’t been angry yet which I suppose comes at some point but I’ve just been really sad.”

Tess has plans to share her story on social media to raise awareness for people going through treatments. Picture: Supplied

Currently Tess is recovering from her hysterectomy before she begins rounds of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Picture: Matt Loxton

Her procedure, which left her without her reproductive organs, has taken away her ability to have a period, something, after over two decades of endometriosis, she never thought she’d miss.

“I’m so sad because I’m not part of the crew anymore,” she said.

“It’s like people being like ‘do you have a tampon?’, it’s like ‘no’.

“It just makes you feel less feminine … it’s lonely.”

Currently Tess is recovering from her hysterectomy before she begins rounds of chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

“At the moment I feel really bad, I haven’t been able to connect with friends because, it’s not jealously or envy, it’s just sadness … they really want to come and see me … but they can leave and get in a car and live their life,” she said.

“I envy work stress and the exhaustion … it’s agonising.”

The restaurant worker wants to help people in similar circumstances navigate the treatment. Picture: Matt Loxton

Tess said she was constantly seeking information about what she is and will be going through.

“I don’t know what to do, I feel very lost,” she said.

She’s been trying to search social media so she can mentally prepare herself, but she hasn’t found any reassuring information.

“I plan on being more open with it … I want to help other people navigate it because I had no f**king idea what was going on,” she said.

In the meantime Tess cannot work for the foreseeable future as she heals from the monumental surgery and undergoes chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

“It’s really hard to get better when you’re worrying about money. I want to get better properly,” she said.

If you’d like to donate to Tess, you can here.