A woman threw a funeral for a 10cm cancerous tumour she had removed from her ovary - dubbing it her 'evil twin' after it was found to contain teeth and hair.

Sally Martin, 27, had suffered from what she thought were kidney stones for years, which left her concerned.

But in January 2025, a CT scan revealed she actually had a teratoma - a rare type of germ cell tumour that may contain immature or fully formed tissue, including teeth, hair, bone and muscle - on her left ovary.

Sally dubbed the tumour her 'evil twin' and named it "Poppy" as a way of trying to remain positive despite the discovery of the growth."

By February, it had grown a further 4cm, and by April, it was 10cm wide.

On April 14, 2025, Sally had an hour-and-a-half surgery at Baptist Health Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky, US, to remove the tumour - which contained hair and a tooth.

It was sent to a pathology department, which revealed that part of the inside was cancerous, but thanks to its swift removal, Sally will require no chemotherapy or radiation.

On April 22, she held a funeral at Mirror Twins, Kentucky, for her teratoma - after giving 30 of her friends and family invitations to join.

Her sister, Hattie Martin, 25, wrote a eulogy, and Sally had a cookie made with "goodbye evil twin" written in icing."



Sally, an events manager, from Lexington, Kentucky, said: "I thought the pain I was experiencing was from kidney stones, but it turned out to be cancer."

"Even though it was a shock, I remained pretty calm."

"Me and my friends called it my 'evil twin, Poppy' to keep everything light-hearted."

"When I saw the image of what was inside the teratoma, I felt like a Russian nesting doll."

"There was hair and teeth, it was strange!"

"I even held a funeral for 'Poppy', I completely committed to the bit."

"It was fun to hold the event and go all out."

"I'm nearly all healed from surgery and I'm feeling great."

Despite going to the doctors for kidney stones - which Sally thought she had been suffering for two years- she was referred to a gynaecologist covered by her health insurance, after an x-ray showed cysts.

A CT scan revealed Sally had a teratoma on her left ovary.

"They'd previously been mistaken for kidney stones," Sally said."

"Doctors said they needed to remove it quickly as the teratoma might twist around my fallopian tubes."

"I've never wanted children, so I was more concerned about my hormone levels."

On April 14, 2025, Sally had outpatient surgery to remove the teratoma.

A pathology department - which examined the teratoma - found that while its contents were cancerous, its swift removal meant that Sally was cancer-free.

She said: "I was too out of it to look at the images the surgeons took, so my mum, Elaine Martin, 52, did and told me what it was like."

"It was kind of gross with hair and a tooth."

"It reminded me of the scene from My Big Fat Greek Wedding when Aunt Voula said the lump, which contained teeth and a spinal cord, was her twin."

The following week after she recovered, Sally held a funeral for 'Poppy' at a brewery, Mirror Twins, in Lexington, with 30 of her friends and family.

Sally said: "It was a really fun day and light-hearted."

"People told me 'I'm sorry' or 'congratulations' as they didn't know what to say."

"I'm fully aware that growths aren't something to be taken lightly."

"I've been really fortunate that it wasn't something fatal, and for the swift medical attention I've received."

"The funeral was like the final chapter of a crazy start to 2025."

"Other than yearly check-ups, I don't need any further treatment."

Sally shared her story on social media.

She said: "I've received lots of supportive messages from people who have also experienced the same."

"It's helped me feel less alone because before this, I didn't know anything about teratomas."