Liz's story
I was diagnosed with breast cancer in July 2010 – I was 49 and as is the case I’m sure with a lot of people it was a complete shock.
Initially, my consultant wasn’t sure whether I would need a lumpectomy or a mastectomy, so there was an agonising 4 week wait from my diagnosis before surgery and it was eventually decided that I would need a mastectomy. The operation went well and I was home within 24 hours. There was some recovery time required, but I was just glad to get my treatment underway and to get the pathology results a couple of weeks later to see exactly what we were dealing with.
I remember one of the hardest things was to tell my brother about my diagnosis. We had lost our mother to lung cancer five years earlier and I knew the news was going to be difficult for me to deliver and for him to hear. But, he was amazing. As my closest family to me I knew I was going to need his help to get through whatever came next in terms of treatment and his unwavering support was incredible. We worked out a plan for telling other relatives and friends – I was concerned about telling people – one of the most difficult things I found about having a cancer diagnosis was dealing with other people’s reactions.
Because I lived on my own I knew I was going to have some challenging times ahead, I made contact with Penny Brohn UK only four days after my diagnosis. I knew I was going to need as much support as possible.
I started chemotherapy around six weeks after my operation and in one of the three week gaps between chemo rounds, I “celebrated” my 50th birthday! I had hoped to have some exciting celebrations but of course that all went by the by, I had a great group of friends who arranged afternoon tea for me and thankfully I was well enough to attend the toned-down celebration!
I did find that the chemo made me very sickly and tired and because of the side effects of the chemo. My mouth and digestive system became very sensitive – on the days when I felt well enough to eat I wasn’t really sure what were the best things were for me nutritionally. That was why coming to Penny Brohn UK was so important as it was so helpful to be able to get guidance about supplements and other things that would help and how important good nutrition was and how it could help me through that difficult time.
I managed all six rounds of the chemo that finished in January 2011 and thankfully didn’t need radiotherapy. It took quite a while to start feeling better after the chemotherapy finished, but gradually I started to get my strength back and I returned to work full-time in October that year.
I got my second diagnosis – endometrial cancer – in January 2012 and had a full hysterectomy in March. Physically I recovered well, but emotionally I found it very very difficult. Dealing with a second cancer diagnosis relatively soon after the first – around a year after finishing the chemo for the breast cancer – was very hard. Also, I didn’t get much information about the effect of losing my hormones – partly due to the ongoing treatment for the breast cancer and then being plunged into menopause straight away after the surgery was devastating and I really struggled for a while. Again Penny Brohn UK were there to help!
Liz's personal life
I didn’t realise the full extent of what the treatment entailed when I was first diagnosed. The fact that I lived on my own and needed to support myself was very challenging and lead to some financial difficulties which were also potential worry. That’s why going to Penny Brohn UK and being able to utilise the services they provided without having to pay was such a help for me. It just wouldn’t have been possible if I’d had to pay. This is why I’ve been such a strong supporter ever since. As soon as I was able, I wanted to give something back.
I met my lovely partner just as I was coming to the end of my chemotherapy. We’d known each other for a long time as friends and he became an incredible support during my treatment. Our relationship grew out of that difficult time and I do look back on that time in my life and can’t regret it. We got married in 2021 and I feel very, very lucky.
My brother was incredible
My brother was my closest family to me at that time. I’ve not had children and my brother and I have always been very close – he’s just three years older than me. When I told him the news he said okay, what do we need to do? What do you need from me? How can I help? He came to all my appointments with me to be an extra pair of ears and ask extra questions when I couldn’t think straight.
He would come and stay with me the night of my chemo days – making me meals when I was very hungry due to the steroids I was on. After my first chemo I was very very poorly – he phoned the hospital and told them I couldn’t stop being sick. They told him to take me down to the hospital, so he drove me down there at 2am in the morning and I think the next day was his birthday! I spent two nights in hospital and he spent his birthday visiting me and making sure I was ok. But he didn’t mind.
It had all been a bit of a shock for us both. We went from having no cancer in the family to my mum passing away from lung cancer, my aunt was diagnosed with lung cancer too, a cousin with bladder cancer and then my aunt being diagnosed again but this time with pancreatic cancer.
Accepting help
I’ve always been fiercely independent, but I can remember people saying to me, what can I do to help? There must be something you need? I came to realise that at a time when I was at my lowest point in my whole life, physically and emotionally and I felt I didn’t have much to give, the one thing I could do which would help me and them was to allow them to do things for me. It might be something small like fetching some shopping for me or making a dish of food for me and dropping it round. It made me feel a bit more empowered at a time when I felt I had nothing to give. It also allowed people to feel that they were able to do something in a situation where people often end up feeling helpless.
And so I learned that sometimes, always being capable and independent isn’t essential, sometimes it’s good to allow people to take care of you. It was one of many important lessons I learnt during that time. I had so many lovely friends who rallied round to help and support me and I’ll always be so grateful to them. We threw a big tea party once I was recovering as a way of thanking everyone.
When Penny Brohn UK stepped in
I was diagnosed on 13th July and on 17th July I was in touch with Penny Brohn UK because I knew I was going to need their help. I had the medical fraternity looking out for me physically, but I knew that I needed to put some things in place to help with everything else – to help to look after me emotionally and to give me some tools to help to deal with all the other things that go with a cancer diagnosis. Everyone at Penny Brohn UK was amazing – I utilised everything that was available from nutritional information to counselling and lots in between. I’m now thirteen years plus past the original diagnosis and remain so grateful for the help I received from Penny Brohn UK, my friends and family. I don’t dwell on worrying about cancer coming back, but I do try to look after my health, I am definitely a different person following my cancer experiences – hopefully a better one!