A one-in-five survival prognosis in 2015 led to 18 months of treatment at Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre, including nine months of intensive chemotherapy, 28 radiotherapy sessions and a year of maintenance chemotherapy.
Those treatments left her with lifelong health issues, including menopause at 15, while she was trying to complete GCSEs and A-levels needed for medical school.
Waters-Barnes said studying became her escape during treatment and later grew into a passion for medicine, shaped by researching her own condition and wanting to help vulnerable patients.
More than 10 years after her diagnosis, she is still undergoing regular checks and says her experience gives her a stronger understanding of what patients need from their doctors.