The loving adoptive mother of double-amputee hero Tony Hudgell has revealed she is recovering from an intensive, life-saving procedure after her bowel cancer spread to her abdominal lining.
Former nurse Paula Hudgell, 58, shared an emotional update on Wednesday saying she has undergone major two-part surgery alongside a hernia repair - calling it 'the most brutal thing I have ever been through'.
Mrs Hudgell has become a tireless campaigner for tougher child cruelty sentences after adopting Tony, 11, whose legs were amputated following horrific abuse by his birth parents.
She received an OBE in 2022 for her inspirational campaigning that led to 'Tony's Law' - legislation that increased the maximum prison sentence for those who cause or allow serious harm or death to a child.
The Kent mother was first diagnosed with bowel cancer in February 2022 after GPs allegedly misdiagnosed her 14 times over four years, dismissing her symptoms as IBS or menopause.
By the time she was diagnosed, the tumour had grown through the bowel wall and her consultant believed it could have been growing for up to ten years.
After initially being declared cancer-free following surgery and chemotherapy, Mrs Hudgell received devastating news that the disease had returned as stage 4 cancer, spreading to her lung and peritoneal lining.
In July last year, she shared the heartbreaking update on social media, writing: 'It's been a huge shock, and it's taken some time for us to get our heads around it... We don't know exactly what the future holds, but I'm ready to give this the biggest fight of my life.'
Now, in an emotional Instagram post shared on Wednesday, Mrs Hudgell revealed she has undergone HIPEC and CRS surgery - a gruelling procedure involving the removal of visible tumors followed by heated chemotherapy treatment directly into the abdominal cavity - along with a hernia repair with mesh.
Posting a photo of herself in a black headscarf next to Tony, she wrote: 'I'm sorry I've been so quiet. I've been deep in recovery after my HIPEC and CRS surgery, along with a hernia repair with mesh, following a peritoneal metastasis from my bowel cancer recurrence.'
She continued: 'I won't sugar-coat it - that first week was the most brutal thing I have ever been through. The pain, the exhaustion, the fear... there were moments I didn't know how I would get through it.
'Somehow, step by step, I did. I made myself get up and walk, again and again, even when every part of me wanted to stop. Those walks carried me through.
'Because of that, I was able to come home after 12 days and be back where I belong - with my beautiful family.'
The inspiring mother then shared that she received test results earlier in the day that had brought welcome news amid her ongoing battle.
'I cried tears of relief,' she said. 'It was a solitary nodule, and no cancer was found anywhere else within that area or the organs they removed. The best news we could have hoped for.
'Now we take the next breath and face the next hurdle - the lung nodules. I have a CT scan on Monday and a call with my oncologist on Tuesday,' she explained.
'We are holding onto hope and prayers that they are stable so surgery can go ahead. If not, then it's back to chemo. Either way, we keep going.'
She added: 'I will never be able to fully express my gratitude to the incredible team at The Hampshire Clinic. Their care, compassion, and skill gave me something priceless - more time with the people I love.'
'And to everyone who checked in, sent messages, prayers, and love - please know they carried me through some very dark moments. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I feel it all.'
She was met with an outpouring of love from friends and supporters including former BBC Radio 2 host Zoe Ball, who wrote: 'Huge love and strength to you wonderful brave lady P.'
Fashion designer Karen Millen added a praying hands emoji.
Three months ago, Paula spoke candidly about the devastating impact her terminal diagnosis has had on her family, including husband Mark, 61, and their children.
She revealed that Tony had been telling his teacher he was 'worried about Mummy' - something that broke her heart given everything the brave boy has already endured.
Mrs Hudgell told the Mirror that Tony doesn't know she is terminally ill, saying: 'To him you can go through awful things, but you always survive - he doesn't know I'm not going to survive this and nor do I want him to.
'We'll keep that from him for as long as we possibly can.'
Mrs Hudgell, from West Malling, Kent, lives with her husband Mark and their family, including Tony, whom the couple were given to foster in 2014 before adopting in 2016.
Tony was just six weeks old when he suffered multiple fractures, sepsis, and organ failure at the hands of his birth parents, ultimately requiring both legs to be amputated.
His birth parents received the maximum sentence available at the time of 10 years and were both released from prison in 2024.
Despite his traumatic start in life, Tony has flourished under the Hudgells' care, learning to walk on prosthetic legs and raising more than £1.8 million for children's charities.
He has won a Pride of Britain award and earned the admiration of the Prince and Princess of Wales.