Vanessa Feltz believes that’medical misogyny’ caused her mother’s sickness to be identified too late.
Vanessa’s mother, Valerie Ohrenstein, died of endometrial cancer in 1995 at the age of 57, and she feels it might have been avoided.
Vanessa, 61, expressed her personal displeasure while discussing medical gender inequality on her TalkTV show.
‘My mum was suddenly experiencing the most excruciating stomach pain, but only irregularly, only sometimes, and extremely unexpectedly,’ she stated.
‘She went from doctor to doctor to doctor, specialist to specialist and they all pretty much did that pat her on the head thing saying, you know, “Are you neurotic? Are you looking for attention? Is it the menopause?…” and it turned out to be endometrial cancer and she died at the age of 57.’
She went on to say that Valerie was “neither heard nor listened to,” and that it “spread so far that they couldn’t really do anything about it.”
Vanessa and her family were less motivated to investigate into it after originally receiving assurances from medical authorities that Valerie was well.
‘When the doctor says it’s nothing to worry about, “Don’t worry your pretty little head about it” you just think, “Okay, good” don’t you?’
She continued: ‘As her family, we, to some extent, thought, “They say it’s nothing serious, good” rather than “Push harder, push harder, and try and find out what it is, it must be something”.’
Vanessa then advised women to speak out if they were worried.
‘You don’t have to kick up a fuss or have a fight but just say it,’ she advised.
Vanessa, who recently divorced her long-term boyfriend Ben Ofoedu, has previously stated that she will have six-month check-ups to ensure she lives a long life.
‘I have everything, everything you can have,’ she told the Mirror.
‘My mother died 20 years ago and I miss her every day. I would like to live much longer than that.’
Watch Vanessa’s drivetime show from Monday to Friday, 5pm on TalkTV
