Fear of doctor meant TV star ignored symptoms of bowel condition for a decade
Chloe Meadows, former star of The Only Way Is Essex, revealed she ignored ulcerative colitis symptoms for about 10 years due to fear of doctors.
Meadows first noticed blood in her stool, a symptom of the chronic inflammatory bowel condition, at age 16 but delayed seeking medical advice.
At 26, after experiencing significant blood loss and being urged by her mother, Meadows had health checks but initially avoided a colonoscopy due to fear.
While filming, Meadows was advised to go to A&E due to low blood levels and later experienced her 'longest flare-up' after a nerve-wracking scene on Towie.
Marianne Radcliffe, chief executive of Crohn's & Colitis UK, praised Meadows as an ambassador, noting that over 300,000 people in the UK live with colitis.
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