Saved by rescue dog who sniffed out my tumour

A MOTHER-of-four told yesterday how her life has been saved after a rescue dog detected her cancer.

tumour, dog miracle, josie conlonNORTH

Josie's dog Ted would cry and paw at her chest - and only then did she notice a lump

Josie Conlon had no idea she had aggressive breast cancer until her two-year-old collie Ted began to repeatedly cry and paw at her chest.

Ted, who was abused as a puppy, is usually reserved so she took immediate notice of the animal's actions.

Josie, 46, of Stockton-on-Tees near Middlesbrough, wondered what was wrong and noticed a bump when she placed her hand on her breast.

Her GP diagnosed her with the devastating news she had grade three cancer.

Last month she had the deadly tumour removed and was told the disease had not spread to her lymph nodes.

It means the condition is unlikely to have spread around the rest of her body.

In the two weeks before her operation the lump had grown 5mm - and Josie believes if it wasn't for Ted she could have been dead withing months.

The housewife said: "When I got the results from the hospital and was told the cancer had not spread the relief I felt was incredible and it is all down to Ted.

"It was also at this point that I was told that the tumour I had was particularly aggressive and had been growing very quickly. If I'd left it any later before going to the doctor the consequences do not bear thinking about.

"I have had Ted for about a year and he was quite a timid dog when I first got him but we soon became very close. He had been badly abused and the bond we formed was incredibly close.

"I feel as though it is fate that we found each other. I saved him, then he saved me.

"He is not normally very affectionate, and would never usually paw me in such a way. That is why I knew something was wrong."

When I got the results from the hospital and was told the cancer had not spread the relief I felt was incredible and it is all down to Ted

Josie Conlon

A vet believes Ted had suffered a blow to the head while with previous owners and it was likely he had been kept in a very small cage.

His muscles had wasted away and he was barely able to walk, but after some tender loving care he made a dramatic recovery.

Josie added: "We are very close.

"I have had other dogs, but never formed as strong a bond with them as I have done with Ted. He saved my life."

She will now undergo 18 weeks of chemotherapy and four weeks of radiotherapy to ensure the cancer does not return.

She said: "I think a lot of people would probably just push a dog away if it started clawing at their chest, but dog owners should take notice, because Ted really did save my life."

Would you like to receive news notifications from Daily Express?