LAURA Davies was warned she might never have another child after being diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2013 – but she has just welcomed her second daughter.

Laura, who runs Surrey Youth Theatre with her husband Simon, was just 28 when she was diagnosed with bowel cancer and told she would need extensive surgery and chemotherapy that could leave her unable to have another baby.

Now aged 34, she has just returned to the Royal Surrey County Hospital to introduce baby Georgia to Dr Tony Dhillion, one of the oncologists she credits with saving her life.

Laura, from Godalming, is sharing her story to raise awareness of the disease.

She was at a routine pregnancy appointment before the birth of her first child when she mentioned to the GP she had blood in her stools, a common symptom of bowel cancer.

Following the birth of India in December 2013, Laura underwent a colonoscopy at the hospital and was diagnosed with bowel cancer.

Further tests revealed the cancer had spread to the area around her bowel, as well as the liver and potentially her reproductive organs.

After undergoing a bowel resection in August 2014, she was told the cancer had not spread to her ovaries and fallopian tubes. She had six rounds of chemotherapy before another operation in which half her liver was removed.

Laura got her first all clear in May 2015 and raised the prospect of having another baby but was advised to wait three years and told not to get her hopes up because the treatment might have made her infertile.

“We waited until the three years had passed and I got pregnant almost straight away,” she said. “When I told the nurses they had tears in their eyes.

“It felt like my world had fallen out from under me when I was diagnosed.

“We always think these things won’t happen to us, but it happens to a lot more people than you realise. Please don’t ignore any health concerns or feel embarrassed to go and see your GP. You may experience a few minutes of discomfort but it could save your life.”

Dr Dhillon, who is a medical oncologist, said: “I was very touched to see Laura and her new baby in clinic – she has come a long way from those dark days at diagnosis. She took on the treatment like she was on a mission – she is an example to others that this disease can be overcome.

“For me, seeing her with her new baby makes me feel proud to be a doctor.”