'A well-timed packet of Walkers prawn cocktail crisps saved my life'

A woman has credited a packet of Walkers Prawn Cocktail crisps for saving her life when the 'tangy' flavour helped uncover hidden cancer.

Hazel Smyth had noticed a stinging sensation on the right side of her tongue whenever she ate particularly flavoursome food such as Chinese chicken curry or prawn cocktail crisps.

However, the 45-year-old put it down to a mild allergy or intolerance, since the pain would subside after 10 minutes.

But when the civil servant noticed she was experiencing discomfort when eating plain food such as chocolate or tomatoes, she sought the advice of her GP.

Two biopsies confirmed the presence of abnormal cells, before Hazel was given a diagnosis of stage-one tongue cancer in August 2024.

The following month Hazel underwent a surgery to cut out a section of her tongue, before doctors discovered the cancer had spread into her lymph nodes - meaning she had a 50% survival rate.

Now classed as stage-four, Hazel then underwent a seven-hour operation in which surgeons removed two tumours from her lymph nodes.

Luckily, Hazel was told she was cancer-free in November 2024 - but believes she may not have survived without the warning signs given by certain spicy foods.

Hazel, who lives near Belfast, Northern Ireland, said: "I was actually just eating prawn cocktail crisps and I thought the right side of my tongue was stinging.

"I looked at my tongue and there was nothing there - no redness or anything.

"Then it never happened again. A few months later I had a chicken curry from the Chinese and the tongue was stinging so much, I had to put cold water on my mouth.

"It was just a plain, mild curry. When I tried to eat the curry again, the same thing happened.

"It was always the right side of my tongue. It was a hot, stinging pain. It felt like my mouth was on fire and would last around 10 minutes.

"I just thought to myself maybe I just can't eat this type of food anymore. Maybe I have an intolerance.

"If I wasn't eating spicy food, I was fine. I had no other signs or symptoms.

"There was no redness or patches on my tongue."

However, in January 2024 Hazel began experiencing pain in her tongue when eating bland food like chocolate and tomatoes, so decided to visit her GP for tests.

Biopsies then revealed that Hazel had abnormal cells on the tissue lining of her tongue before further tests led to a stage-one cancer diagnosis.

Two months later, Hazel had a surgery to remove a section of her tongue but soon went under the knife again when doctors discovered the cancer was now stage-four after spreading to her lymph nodes.

Hazel said: "I couldn't understand because they'd caught the cancer so early. Then they told me I had a 50% chance of surviving five years.

"I thought I was dying. I felt like I was looking death in the eye. I felt am I going to have to plan my funeral?

"I went to see a consultant two weeks later and was told it had been removed and I was now cancer-free but would have to go through preventative radiotherapy to make sure there were no micro-cells in my tongue or neck.

"I could've just put the whole thing down to an allergy and ignored it. It would've been a major surgery and spread further.

"That packet of crisps and curry helped save my life. It was my body telling me there was something wrong with me.

"I would tell anyone else to get any pain or changes in your mouth checked out by the doctors."

Hazel is planning on doing a sky dive in October to help raise money for Action Cancer.

To make a donation, visit: https://www.justgiving.com/page/hazel-smyth-4