08-04-2025
Edinburgh woman's 'menopause symptoms' turned out to be chronic liver disease
An Edinburgh woman who thought her liver disease symptoms was the menopause has opened up on her shocking diagnosis.
Jo McCardle, 52, said she went through a 'really dark time' after she was told she had Primary Biliary Cholangitis - a liver disease that can get progressively worse over time.
She first noticed symptoms back in 2022 including fatigue and brain fog. She also wasn't articulate and stopped paying attention to detail.
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Speaking to Edinburgh Live, the Global Medical Affairs Manager said she put her feelings down to menopause before a blood test determined her diagnosis.
She is now on lifetime medication but said she will not let the disease 'define her'.
Jo added: "It has been such a journey for me. At the time, I had an incident at work and I had to go to A&£.
"I had my bloods taken and they said there was something wrong with my blood results and I was referred to my GP. They phoned me after and said I had something serious going on but I didn't know what it was.
"I was referred to a liver specialist and it was a really dark time for me. I didn't want to tell family everything that was going on. I did look up a lot of things but I didn't know what was happening - I just knew it was going to be a bad outcome.
"Around three or four months later, I got the liver test to check the condition. I was relieved I wasn't dying but I did feel really ashamed at first. I remember feeling tired a lot, I had a lot of brain fog and I was forgetting things.
"I didn't fell well at all and realised I wasn't paying attention to detail anymore. I just thought it was menopause I was going through."
Jo was able to catch the disease at a good stage and is thankful her liver was in a treatable condition.
She continued: "Luckily, although I have the condition it was picked up at a good stage and if it hadn't been, it could have been really damaged. It was pure luck I got the blood test done at work to pick it up.
"This is just my normal now and I don't want to be defined by this - I want to live my life. It has really been a journey for me but it's made me appreciate everything a lot more.
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"Having the disease doesn't mean your life is over - I still have a very functioning job role and there is hope after the diagnosis of a long term condition.
PBC is a lifelong condition associated with severe fatigue and persistent, debilitating itch – but can worsen over time and cause liver failure..
New medication Iqirvo has recently been approved which could help those impacted across Scotland. Around 1,900 people and 9 in 10 people living with PBC are woman, with most menopausal age around 40-60 years.
