A young woman diagnosed with terminal cancer at 20 has shared the early warning signs she experienced.

Dominique McShain, a psychology student at the University of Canterbury, received the devastating news just before her 21st birthday. In May 2024, she pledged to “make a difference” and raise awareness about colorectal cancer after doctors found “massive lumps” during an ultrasound.

Dominique first noticed fatigue, sleeping “another five to six hours every single day” despite a full night’s rest. She also had “blood in my stool” and alternated between constipation, diarrhea, and normal bowel movements. Abdominal pain, appetite loss, and dizziness followed.

Her blood tests were mostly normal, but liver samples were “abnormally high,” leading to further scans and a biopsy confirming cancer. Recently, Dominique shared that it has spread to her lungs, with doctors estimating she has a year to live.

She keeps her 194,000 TikTok followers updated and has a Give A Little page for treatment and living costs.

Separately, experts highlight rising lung cancer in non-smokers. The IARC links this to air pollution and evolving smoking habits, urging “further investigation into how air pollution and other possible casual factors can cause lung cancer.”