Delyth found a lump in her breast just as the UK was going into lockdown in 2020. The nationwide restrictions meant she had to postpone her wedding, but going through treatment gave her a new perspective on life.
I was young, fit and healthy at the time of my diagnosis
I was diagnosed with breast cancer in March 2020, right when COVID was kicking off.
I first noticed something was wrong while I was in the shower. I reached up to get the shower gel when I felt a pulling sensation in my right breast. When I investigated a bit, I found a small lump.
My first thought was, ‘Don’t panic.’
I asked Mark, who was my boyfriend at the time, if he could feel the lump. He could, but I still left it for a couple of days in case it had something to do with hormones. When it hadn’t gone after that time, I had this niggling thought in the back of my mind that I should get it checked out, so I made an appointment with my GP.
After an examination, I was referred to a hospital. I had a , ultrasound and – it was very thorough. Then, 9 days later, I was diagnosed with breast cancer.
It was a shock. I was 39, healthy, and exercised regularly.
I felt so lucky when I found out the cancer hadn’t spread
When treatment began, Mark was amazing. He took me to all my appointments, even though he couldn’t come in because of lockdown restrictions. Thankfully, he had been there when I got my diagnosis. When I think back to it now, though, it’s all a bit of a blur.
The pandemic made everything a bit more challenging. My friends and family would phone and text me frequently, but we couldn’t see one another much. That was hard.
On 12 May, I had a lumpectomy and some lymph nodes removed from my armpit. They were tested and, fortunately, showed the cancer hadn’t spread. I was really lucky to have caught it in the early stages.
The tests also showed that I was HER2-, so I didn’t need chemotherapy. I finished my treatment with 5 consecutive days of radiotherapy and then began taking , which I’ll need to be on for 5 years.
I was really fortunate that the pandemic didn’t cause a delay in my treatment. Unfortunately, I did have to postpone my wedding.
Cancer made me realise life is short
Mark and I were due to get married on 30 May 2020, but the restrictions meant we pushed it back a year to May 2021. When that came around, though, there were still lockdowns in place. We still wanted a party and to celebrate with friends so we thought we’d postpone again to 5 March this year.
The thing is, breast cancer really put things into perspective for me. Life is short, and it’s full of surprises and curveballs, so – after a chat – Mark and I thought, why wait? Let’s get married!
So, on 1 July 2021, we got married at a local registry office. We were only allowed 2 witnesses, so my mum and Mark’s mum joined us, and then we went out for food with our immediate family. It was a perfect day.
However, we still wanted to celebrate with the rest of our family and friends (and I wanted to wear my dress!), so we still went ahead with our wedding in March this year.
I want other people to be aware of their risk
Because of everything that had happened over the last couple of years, my wedding seemed like a perfect opportunity to show my support for Breast Cancer Now.
I hadn’t heard of the charity before my diagnosis, but all the information I got from them was so helpful while I was going through treatment. I also visited the website and found it useful to read through stories from other people who had been through breast cancer. I’d say I’m quite a positive person anyway, but it really helped to have that extra boost.
So, to raise awareness and give a little something back, I got in touch with Breast Cancer Now and ordered some pins to give to all the female guests as wedding favours. We did the same thing with the British Heart Foundation for the men, as Mark’s dad sadly died of a heart attack.
It was a simple thing to do, but it was poignant and it meant a lot to us.
I know, in the grand scheme of things, that I’m one of the lucky ones, so I really hope that sharing my story and making other people aware of their breast cancer risk will do some good.
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