Christine Money
Christine was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007 after going for a routine mammogram. It came as a complete shock to her and her family as there was no history of cancer and she had always been very active and outgoing. Christine describes herself as ‘one of the lucky ones’ as it was caught early but she has seen the affect it can have on others.
"My son was in hospital having an operation on his knee when he contracted MRSA and became seriously ill. Whilst he was in hospital I missed my appointment for a routine mammogram but wasn't too worried as they had always come back all clear. Once he got better I rearranged my appointment and went for the mammogram. They called me back shortly afterwards to tell me that there were signs that the cells lining the milk ducts could be cancerous. I went for a biopsy and doctors discovered the tumour was larger than they had first expected.
I had the operation to remove the affected area of the breast and went back for the results shortly after. I was told they hadn't got it all and that I would need chemotherapy, a second operation and radiotherapy. I decided to get a second opinion which confirmed this and I was advised to go ahead with the operation and treatment just to make sure they had got it all.
I will need five years of treatment and regular checkups and I am taking a new set of drugs that have a higher success rate compared to other drugs. I am also taking part in two research trials, one that looks at the affects of chemotherapy on the heart and another that looks into the inheritance of breast cancer. My family were extremely supportive but it was very tough on them. My daughter was at University at the time in Newcastle, so she felt powerless to help and my son had come out of hospital and was just about to start his A-levels.
A close friend of mine had recently been through it and it was as though she had written the script for me. I stayed very positive throughout knowing that if she could beat it so could I. Sadly I know many women who have been through breast cancer so I had a lot of people to turn to for help and advice, but the doctors and nursing staff were second to none. There are a lot of people out there willing to help so don't be afraid to accept it. It is worrying to see the number of younger people being affected by cancer and my hope is that they will look at bringing the age down to below 50 for mammogram screening. Until there is a cure for cancer, early detection and developing new treatments are key to controlling this disease."
