My treatment was gruelling
DOUBLE Helping others
BIG heal stor th y
Tracy Holden, 46, from Blackburn, returned from holiday with a devastating diagnosis...
A
without a mum? ‘So what do we do now?’ I asked, wiping my tears. being tested, I knew deep The first step was a single down that something was mastectomy, which I very wrong. underwent that November. And I was right. Thankfully, it was a success, A week later, I was back to and I was home the same day. see a consultant. But it felt odd – my ‘I’m so sorry, but once full breast had you have breast cancer,’ she said. Cancer been taken away and now flat down to That wasn’t all. covered was my ribs. She went on to say The following that I actually had my entire month, I started two types of breast breast chemotherapy. cancer – lobular and The sickness that a ductal carcinoma. came with it was One was on top of unbelievably horrible. the other, and together they I was throwing up every day, had covered my entire breast. my hair fell out, and everything ‘It explains why there was no I ate tasted horrible. lump,’ she said. By my fifth session, I lost my My mind was racing, but eyebrows and eyelashes. now, my main concern was for ‘I look like a monster,’ I cried. Losing the hair on my head had been one thing – at least I could cover that up. But losing my eyebrows just made me look so ill. Still, I tried to stay I did it for positive for the kids. my family In March 2017, I
FACT FILE
revent Breast Cancer is the Pfunding only UK breast cancer charity groundbreaking
WORDS BY LAEA MARSHALL PHOTOS: SWNS AND GETTY
dmiring my tan in the mirror, I grinned proudly. It was June 2016, and I was on holiday in Gran Canaria with my husband Phil, now 45, and our kids Reece, 14, and Annabelle, seven. ‘You’ve done well,’ Phil winked, admiring my bronzed skin. ‘I’ll get ready for dinner,’ I said, taking off my bikini. Just then, looking in the mirror, I noticed that my right nipple was completely flat. That’s odd, I thought. Feeling my breast, I couldn’t feel a lump, so I put it to the back of my mind. But to be safe, when we got home a few days later, I went to my GP. She couldn’t feel any lumps either, but referred me to the breast clinic at Burnley Hospital. Two weeks later, I had a mammogram, an ultrasound and a biopsy done. As I lay on the table
y kids. as I o die? e left
finished chemo. That was followed by 15 sessions of radiotherapy – which was a walk in the park n comparison. After that, a mammogram showed o evidence of disease. I felt like a prisoner nally released from jail. In January 2019, I had econstructive surgery, aving me feeling so uch more confident th my body. I was finally healthy d ready to move on th my life. After everything I’d en through, I felt I eded to help others. o, in October last year, gned up to take part in BreastFest campaign. Run by the charity vent Breast Cancer, it a campaign to make ple more breast aware. igned up as one of 100 men who had been ted by breast cancer – were advocates for the paign and called elves BooBees! We visited local businesses, educating staff about breast cancer, and hosted an ‘afternoon bee’, where we performed a catwalk show in our underwear! It was all to raise awareness and have some fun. My message to other women would be to check your breasts once a month, and if you feel something, no matter how small, get it checked out. And remember, it’s not always a lump you’ll feel. Having breast cancer has completely changed my life. I appreciate things more and I’m so grateful to be here.
research solely aimed at preventing the disease for future generations. Their mantra is ‘predict, prevent, detect’. They predict – by identifying who is at risk of breast cancer. They prevent – by offering interventions to stop breast cancer before it starts. They protect – with a goal to shield future generations from breast cancer. Visit preventbreastcancer. org.uk for more information. 17
