****this woman has been waiting 25 years to be seen by a doctor, b/c of Brit healthcare queues.****
Astute observation and conclusion.
She was a 51 year-old woman when she ‘swallowed’ that pen. There is no way she didn’t notice - unless she was drunk....or it was a very small pen.
FWIW I have a really tiny pen - 2.5” long - with a sharp point- the smallest I have ever seen - and it would still be impossible to swallow without choking or piercing the esophagus.