Scottish rugby player Emma Wassell felt as though she had the “biggest family in the world” as she recovered from tumour surgery.
The 29-year-old, from Ellon, was forced to withdraw from her country’s squad for the WXV 2 tournament when she was diagnosed with a chest tumour last month.
Her teammates “rallied round” to support her during her almost two weeks in hospital and made up a rota to help care for her.
She said their presence meant even more because her mum Pauline, who died in April, could not be there.
“I don’t know how I would have got through it without them,” she told BBC Scotland News.
“You’re lying in your hospital bed, and I suppose you typically think about having your family around you, and yeah, I would have loved having my mum there with me.
“But also, I think having your family is really difficult, because it’s very difficult for family to see your daughter look and be that vulnerable.
“As soon as people found out, in terms of my teammates, found out about where I was, it was how they could get there, what they could do to help.”
Emma Wassell diagnosed with benign tumour
The Loughbrough Lightning lock visited A&E in Edinburgh due to a sore neck which started swelling as she sat in the waiting room.
Doctors found the tumour in her chest following CT scans and confirmed the swelling had been caused by a spontaneous bleed.
Emma went to the “worst-case scenario” when she received her diagnosis but the tumour was later found to be benign.
“I think what scared me the most is where it was and what it was impacting,” she said.
“It was in my chest, it was my neck – it was when there’s a concern around your breathing, I think that’s what’s so scary.”
Surgeons initially tried to remove the tumour through her neck before trying again through the rib but her lung collapsed.
She will have to undergo a full sternotomy to hopefully remove it all later this month.
Rugby star focusing on recovery
The professional rugby player was one of the first 28 females to be given a full-time contract by the Scottish Rugby Union in December 2022.
The following month, she told The Press and Journal that Scotland “deserve” to be at World Cups.
The team are currently sitting second the WXV 2 tournament with their hopes of qualifying for the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup still alive.
While Emma is focused on recovering from surgery, she is also looking ahead to future rugby challenges.
“It’s a long journey ahead, I’m sure. But something wonderful is that sport gives you this,” she said.
“You absolutely love a challenge, and this is just another one.”
Conversation