"I Thought My Rash Was Just a Virus Side Effect – Now, at 24, I've Been Given Six Months to Live"

A WOMAN who had a persistent rash believed it was caused by a virus, but she was shocked to learn it was a symptom of an aggressive cancer.

In March 2025, Caitlin Leggett, 24, noticed she had a rash that would not go away, despite using creams from the pharmacy.

Caitlin Leggett was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer in 2025 after noticing a persistent rash on her bodyCredit: Collect/PA Real Life Doctors thought the rash was caused by a virus, but a blood test revealed something much more serious Credit: Collect/PA Real Life

After a few weeks of the rash persisting, she went to her , who thought she may have a virus.

Blood tests were ordered to investigate, and Caitlin was shocked to be told to go to the Llewellyn Teenage Cancer Trust unit at University Hospital of in the following day.

At the appointment, she was sadly diagnosed with acute myeloid (AML), an aggressive type of blood .

Reacting to the , Caitlin said: “At 24, I always assumed I had my whole life ahead of me.

Caitlin was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) at just 24-years-oldCredit: Collect/PA Real Life Pictured with her twin sister Grace, Caitlin said her diagnosis is “unthinkable” Credit: PA Real Life

“There are so many things I still want to do, places I want to see, and memories I want to make with the people I love.”

Caitlin, who lives in Cardiff, said it’s “unthinkable” she may only have months left to live.

is a type of blood cancer that affects the white blood cells.

Acute leukaemia means it progresses quickly and aggressively and needs immediate treatment, the says.

Symptoms of AML usually develop over a few weeks and include feeling or weak, frequent infections, unusual and frequent bleeding or bruising, losing weight without trying and looking pale or washed out.

Nearly 80 per cent of people diagnosed with AML in the UK will not survive beyond five years.

Caitlin graduated from the of Bristol in July 2024, along with her twin sister Grace, and had plans to join the and train as an intelligence officer.

As part of the job process, she had a requisite medical assessment booked for April 2025.

But the month before, she had developed a rash that would not go away.

Caitlin’s GP thought she had a virus and ordered some blood tests, which were taken on April 3.

But she immediately knew it was not good news when she was told to go to the Llewellyn Teenage Trust unit at University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff on April 4.

The same day, she received her devastating blood diagnosis.

Caitlin was diagnosed with the aggressive blood cancer just one day after she had a blood test Credit: Collect/PA Real Life The twin, however, had no symptoms of the cancer besides the persistent rash Credit: PA Real Life

Weirdly, Caitlin said that she had none of the common symptoms of blood – the rash was the only sign.

She was told a stem cell transplant was one treatment option for the , so her whole family underwent testing to see if they were a match.

A stem cell transplant replaces the destroyed cancerous cells with healthy stem cells from the donor.

Caitlin’s twin sister Grace was told that she would likely be a match for her sister, but genetic testing in June 2025 showed this sadly was not possible.

Their entire lives, the twins believed they were fraternal twins, but the tests revealed that they were actually identical twins.

This discovery meant a setback for Caitlin’s treatment – as they have near-identical , Caitlin said “the whole concept of the transplant wouldn’t work” as the body has to recognise the stem cells as foreign in order for them to combat the cancerous cells.

Unfortunately, no other family members were a match, either.

But after two months of , Caitlin amazingly achieved remission in May 2025.

This relief, sadly, did not last long though as she was told in August that the had returned to her skin – an abnormal relapse.

Caitlin then took part in a menin inhibitors trial in Manchester – a new type of targeted therapy used to treat AML – to eliminate the leukaemia in her skin.

Luckily this was successful, and she went into complete remission.

She was given a stem cell transplant date in December 2025 but was unfortunately told that the cancer had returned to her a week before this.

She was still able to have the transplant, but needed extra full-body radiotherapy beforehand – it was deemed to be successful and she was told she was in remission again in January 2026.

Tragically, Caitlin was told just four months later that the cancer had returned and that it was fast-growing.

From May 2026, Caitlin has taken part in another drug trial for Bleximenib and is waiting to see whether her body responds.

Her doctors say there is another drug trial option in case it is not successful, but they have told the twin she cannot have a second stem cell transplant in the UK.

Doctors have explained that these treatments are not curative and predict that Caitlin’s current treatment plan will help her survive for just six more months.

But unwilling to give up, Caitlin has decided to pursue potentially curative treatment abroad.

She is considering specialised leukaemia treatment in America or CAR-T cell therapy, a type of immunotherapy, in or Singapore .

These treatments, however, will cost thousands of pounds so the twins have set up a GoFundMe page to try and raise £500,000 to cover the costs.

If the twins are unable to raise the needed, it is unlikely that Caitlin will live to see her 25th birthday.

She said: “It’s incredibly difficult to think about.

“What I would miss most isn’t one particular event, it’s the chance to keep living an ordinary life with the people I love and growing older alongside my twin sister.

“Those are the things that matter most to me, and that’s why I’m doing everything I can to find another treatment option.

“I don’t want to miss out on the future we always thought we’d share together.”