Nurse and midwife Victoria Turner went to her rural GP for prolonged fatigue and unexplained weight loss, only to be told she was experiencing symptoms of menopause and stress.
After eight months of persistent issues, including changes in urinary habits, the 59-year-old insisted on a scan that ultimately revealed a large ovarian tumour in May 2020.
With no access to a gynaecological oncologist in the NSW Northern Rivers, Ms Turner had to travel to Queensland for surgery and specialist appointments.
She also dealt with complex cross-border travel and was not allowed hospital visitors, having been diagnosed at the height of COVID-19 lockdowns.
"Initially it was shock," Ms Turner told AAP.
"But I must admit I felt a little bit angry that I'd been fobbed off and wondered where I'd be if it had been noticed earlier. It was really traumatic."
Having defied her five-year prognosis and with no cancer recurrence, Ms Turner now advocates for other rural patients.
She is one of several people with lived experience to help experts draft a national optimal care pathway for rural cancer patients, published on Tuesday, in an effort to improve survival rates.
Rural Australians are 13 per cent less likely to survive cancer, largely due to late diagnoses, according to research by Deakin University.
Delayed care is usually influenced by vast distances to medical facilities, longer waiting times for GPs and a shortage of specialists.
It is part of an entrenched and widening gap, with an annual shortfall of $9.23 billion in rural health spending, according to an analysis published by the National Rural Health Alliance.
The new rural cancer pathway recommends care as close to home as is safely possible, with greater uptake of telehealth, stronger referral systems and improved financial and travel assistance.
The guidelines, which add to those already in place for a variety of patients, were developed with Deakin researchers and the Cancer Council to tap into the strengths of rural communities.
Cancer care nurse and pathway expert panel member Carmel O'Kane said the guidelines recognised the unique needs of rural patients.
"It asks health teams to think about what matters in a patient's life, whether that's a flood-prone road in the wet season, harvest time, or who will look after the farm or business while someone is away for treatment," Ms O'Kane said in a statement.
The pathway was welcomed by Governor-General Sam Mostyn, who said quality of cancer care should not be defined by where a patient lived.
"It can change the experience of cancer for just so many people," Ms Mostyn said.
Ms Turner said the framework would help patients and their families advocate for themselves and untangle the medical system, with clear information on the specialists, surgeries and support.
Advocating for herself and getting assistance from an ovarian cancer nurse helped Ms Turner defy the odds.
"It is a postcode lottery," she said.