The devoted adoptive mother of double-amputee hero Tony Hudgell has issued a deeply emotional update from her hospital bed after undergoing what she described as the most brutal, life-saving surgery of her life.
Former nurse Paula Hudgell, 58, revealed she is recovering after intensive HIPEC and CRS surgery, alongside a hernia repair, after her bowel cancer spread to the peritoneal lining. Writing candidly, she admitted the first week of recovery was overwhelming, filled with pain, exhaustion and fear — moments when she genuinely did not know how she would get through.
Paula, who has become a tireless campaigner for tougher child cruelty sentences since adopting Tony, shared that she forced herself to stand and walk again and again, even when every part of her body wanted to stop. Those short, painful walks, she said, carried her through the darkest days.
In an emotional Instagram post shared alongside a photo of herself in a black headscarf next to Tony, Paula explained she had been quiet while recovering from the gruelling two-part procedure. She refused to sugar-coat the ordeal, describing it as the hardest thing she has ever endured — but one that ultimately allowed her to return home after 12 days to be with her family.
Amid the anguish came a glimmer of hope. Paula revealed she had received test results earlier that day showing a solitary nodule, with no cancer found elsewhere in the areas and organs removed. She admitted she cried tears of relief, calling it the best news they could have hoped for at this stage.
However, the battle is far from over. Paula said the family is now bracing for the next hurdle — lung nodules — with a CT scan scheduled and a follow-up call with her oncologist. She explained that if surgery cannot proceed, it will be back to chemotherapy, adding simply: “Either way, we keep going.”
Paula was first diagnosed with bowel cancer in February 2022 after being misdiagnosed multiple times over four years, with symptoms repeatedly dismissed as IBS or menopause. By the time doctors discovered the tumour, it had already grown through the bowel wall. Although she was initially declared cancer-free after surgery and chemotherapy, she later received the devastating news that the disease had returned as stage-four cancer, spreading to her lung and abdominal lining.
In July last year, she shared a heartbreaking message admitting the diagnosis had come as a huge shock, but vowed she was ready to give it the biggest fight of her life.
Beyond her health battle, Paula is widely admired for her campaigning work that led to Tony’s Law — legislation increasing the maximum prison sentence for those who cause or allow serious harm or death to a child. Her efforts earned her an OBE in 2022.
She also paid tribute to the medical team who treated her, saying their care and compassion gave her something priceless: more time with the people she loves. Messages of support flooded in, including from Zoe Ball, who sent love and strength, and fashion designer Karen Millen, who shared her prayers.
In a previous interview, Paula admitted the most heartbreaking part of her diagnosis has been its impact on her family — particularly Tony, who has been telling his teacher he is worried about “Mummy.” She revealed he does not know she is terminally ill, explaining that to him, people always survive, and she wants to protect that belief for as long as possible.
Tony, who suffered catastrophic injuries as a baby at the hands of his birth parents, has flourished under the Hudgells’ care — learning to walk on prosthetic legs, raising more than £1.8 million for children’s charities, winning a Pride of Britain award and earning admiration from the Prince and Princess of Wales.