Miss World Australia finalist from Tasmania Tirah Ciampa talks about her battle with pancreatic cancer and the symptoms she’s been missing
- Tirah Ciampa, 27, had a massive tumor in her pancreas
- Model wrote “goodbye letters” to loved ones
- Reveals the symptoms she missed and advice for others
A Miss World Australia finalist thought her life was over in February and embarked on the grim task of writing farewell letters to her lover.
Tirah Ciampa, 27, from Somerset in northwestern Tasmania, had a massive tumor in her pancreas and underwent an arduous seven-hour operation to remove it.
For the procedure, she had to be hooked up to nine different tubes in the hospital for more than a week and put on a liquid diet to survive.
In the months before, Ms. Ciampa knew something was wrong, but admits she ignored the warning signs.
“I felt like I had been punched in the back,” she wrote on Facebook.
‘I was constantly on the floor at work and went to physio. I thought I hurt myself at the gym or maybe just slumped at my desk.”
Tirah Ciampa (pictured), 27, has revealed how she felt symptoms for nearly a year before doctors removed a massive 6 x 6 inch tumor that had already devoured half of her pancreas
Ms. Ciampa had written “goodbye letters” to loved ones because she thought the cancer was going to kill her
Ms. Ciampa said her heart rate would increase and she would have random cramps.
“I’ve been seeing the doctors since November last year trying to figure out what was going on,” she explained.
“I had a cardiologist take care of me, but it wasn’t until February that I was booked in for an abdominal ultrasound and that’s when I saw the huge mass.”
Doctors had finally discovered the source of her pain: a 6 x 6 inch tumor in her pancreas, which had already consumed half of the organ.
‘Listen to your body! Especially women who attribute any weird feeling to their menstrual cycle or hormones,” she said.
‘Your body is a temple, that’s all we have to live in this beautiful world. Don’t take it for granted.”
Mrs Cimapa will never be able to drink alcohol again, exercise and there is a permanent clot in her spleen
She urged people, especially women, to listen to their bodies and not “blame every weird feeling about their menstrual cycle or hormones.”
She said it was “crazy” to live so long with a pancreas that is 50 percent functional.
“I was writing letters to my loved ones, arranging my retirement, tidying up my laptop and doing spring cleaning,” Ms. Ciampa recalled. The Sunday Tasmanian.
“I wanted to make sure my funeral would be paid for, that it would be an easy mess to clean up. I was getting ready to leave.’
After her marathon surgery, the grueling recovery process began with extensive physical therapy.
But Ms. Ciampa miraculously overcame her battle against the odds and is preparing to take the stage at the Miss World Australia national final on the Gold Coast in August.
Unlike other contestants, she will have a long scar that runs from her chest to her navel.
But she says she’s “not afraid to show off — not even in a two-piece bikini on stage.”
The Hobart model will compete in the Miss World Australia final next month
Her seven-hour surgery has left her with a long scar that runs from her chest to her navel
Although Ms. Ciampa will never be able to drink alcohol or exercise again due to a permanent clot in her spleen, the model says she is incredibly lucky.
“I’m so lucky I still have the head of my pancreas and because of my healthy lifestyle I may not get diabetes until I’m much older,” she said.
Mrs. Ciampa has raised more than $2,500 towards her $5,000 goal for the Variety Children’s Charity, which helps underprivileged children.