A woman has told how doctors warned there was an 80 per cent chance she would die after surprising symptoms revealed she had an ectopic pregnancy.<br /><br />Just a few weeks after finding out she was pregnant, Natalie Stapley Cutting, 26, knew "something was definitely wrong."<br /><br />At seven weeks pregnant, she noticed a persistent tingling in her right thigh, coupled with some numbness and a stabbing pain in her right side. <br /><br />Though her 12-week scan was on the horizon, Natalie saw her GP early to discuss her concerns. <br /><br />She claims she was given a clean bill of health - but unsatisfied, spent £90 on a private scan, which found an ectopic pregnancy.<br /><br />She had life-saving surgery to remove the fertilised egg, the right fallopian tube and part of her uterus lining. <br /><br />And now the military make-up artist is speaking out to urge women to trust their own bodies and always get a second opinion if they are in doubt.<br /><br />Natalie, from Newark, Nottinghamshire, said: “I almost lost my life due to a misdiagnosis from my doctor.<br /><br />“Private healthcare saved my life."<br /><br />Natalie and her husband, Tom Cutting, 27, who works as a mechanical technician, found out they were pregnant on December 6 2023. <br /><br />She was initially assured by her GP that her pregnancy was normal, but nevertheless remained convinced that something was untoward.<br /><br />She said: “The GP was convinced I was fine, but it just didn’t seem right to me.<br /><br />“The doctors didn’t listen to me properly. <br /><br />“If I had listened to my GP I don’t know where I’d be today.”<br /><br />She had a private scan on 16 December.<br /><br />She said: “They found my uterus was empty. <br /><br />“As a private clinic, they couldn’t offer a diagnosis but recommended we go to King’s Mill Hospital immediately.”<br /><br />Natalie underwent her first exploratory surgery on December 18, which detected the fertilised egg in her right fallopian tube - growing into her uterus lining. <br /><br />An ectopic pregnancy occurs when a fertilised egg implants itself outside of the womb, usually in one of the fallopian tubes - which connect the ovaries to the womb. <br /><br />If the fertilised egg is found here it is unfortunately not possible to save the pregnancy and the growing tissue poses a danger to life if left untreated. <br /><br />Natalie had surgery on December 19.<br /><br />She had to sign a waiver concerning the risk of death.<br /><br />Natalie, who specialises as an army make-up artist preparing ‘casualties’ for training purposes, recovered from the surgery and now wishes to share her story to help others. <br /><br />If Natalie had waited until the 12-week scan as her GP advised, then she would have likely died from internal bleeding, she says.<br /><br />Natalie has set up a podcast called Ectopic Pregnancy and Me on TikTok.<br /><br />She said: “I have set this up to create awareness to in turn help save lives and to create a community to support those suffering from an ectopic pregnancy and the mental health effects afterwards.”
