North Carolina mom ‘desperate’ for answers receives shocking diagnosis from Chat GPT

The mother of two began experiencing excruciating stomach pains, losing a stone in just four weeks in September 2024, which doctors initially attributed to acid reflux

Lauren Bannon grew concerned last February after noticing that she couldn’t bend her little fingers(Image: Kennedy News and Media)

A North Carolina mother, “desperate” to learn why she couldn’t bend her fingers, turned to Chat GPT for help, leading to a shocking cancer diagnosis.

‌

Lauren Bannon grew concerned in February 2024 after noticing she struggled to bend her little fingers in the morning and evening. After four months, the 40-year-old was told by doctors she had rheumatoid arthritis despite testing negative for the condition.

Article continues below

The mother of two began experiencing excruciating stomach pains, losing a stone in just four weeks in September 2024, which doctors initially attributed to acid reflux. Eager to understand her body’s changes, later that month, the business owner shared her symptoms with the AI messaging service Chat GPT, which suggested she might have Hashimoto’s disease.

READ MORE: TSA approves 11 new items you can now travel with in any sizeREAD MORE: Student-loan penalties could hit hard in 2 weeks if you don’t take this action now

The 40-year-old was told by doctors she had rheumatoid arthritis(Image: Kennedy News and Media)

Hashimoto’s disease is an autoimmune condition where the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the thyroid gland, causing it to become inflamed and eventually underactive. Despite reservations from her doctor, Lauren insisted that she be tested for the condition in September and was shocked to discover that Chat GPT was correct.

Article continues below

This prompted doctors to carry out scans of Lauren’s thyroid and discover two small lumps in her neck that were confirmed as cancer in October 2024. Lauren, who owns a marketing company, said she would never have found the hidden cancer without the help of Chat GPT, which she credits for helping save her life.

Lauren underwent an ultrasound of her thyroid where doctors discovered two cancerous lumps in her neck(Image: Kennedy News and Media)

Lauren, from Newry, Northern Ireland, living between the US Virgin Islands and Wilmington, North Carolina, US, said: “I felt let down by doctors. It was almost like they were just trying to give out medication for anything to get you in and out the door. I needed to find out what was happening to me; I just felt so desperate. I just wasn’t getting the answers I needed. So that’s when I pulled up Chat GPT. I already used it for work.”

‌

“I started typing what mimics rheumatoid arthritis, and it popped up saying ‘you may have Hashimoto’s disease, ask your doctor to check your thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPO) levels.’

Lauren remains under life-long monitoring to ensure the cancer doesn’t return(Image: Kennedy News and Media)

“So I went to my doctor, and she told me, ‘I couldn’t have that; there was no family history of it,’ but I said, ‘Just amuse me.’”

‌

After a positive test for Hashimoto’s disease, Lauren underwent an ultrasound of her thyroid, where doctors discovered two cancerous lumps in her neck.

In January 2025, Lauren underwent an operation to remove her thyroid and two lymph nodes from her neck, but remains under lifelong monitoring to ensure the cancer doesn’t return.

Click here to follow the Mirror US on Google News to stay up to date with all the latest news, sports and entertainment stories

‌

Since Lauren did not show the ‘typical’ symptoms of Hashimoto’s disease, she thinks that the condition and her ensuing cancer diagnosis would have gone unnoticed without the help of Chat GPT.

The 40-year-old explained: “I didn’t have the typical symptoms of Hashimoto’s disease, I wasn’t tired or feeling exhausted.

“If I hadn’t looked on Chat GPT, I would’ve just taken the rheumatoid arthritis medication and the cancer would’ve spread from my neck to everywhere else.

‌

“The doctor said I was very lucky to have caught it so early. I know for sure that cancer would’ve spread without using Chat GPT.

“It saved my life. I just knew that something was wrong with me. I would’ve never discovered this without Chap GPT. All my tests were perfect.

Article continues below

“I would encourage others to use Chat GPT with their health concerns, act with caution, but if it gives you something to look into, ask your doctors to test you. It can’t do any harm. I feel lucky to be alive.”