Cassie's story

There were so many stages to my diagnosis, and each one felt overwhelming. I had an MRI on the right side, and I’ll never forget it—I was in the middle of watching Bridget Jones when the phone rang. They told me they’d found something on the scan. In the end, there was nothing wrong with the right breast, but the backandforth, the uncertainty, the waiting… it all took such a toll.

Work was difficult too. People started avoiding my office. They didn’t know what to say, so they said nothing. I couldn’t understand it, because I would never do that to someone. It felt oldfashioned, almost, that people were still so afraid of talking about cancer. But I also wasn’t someone who talked openly about it—I kept a lot inside. It was a lonely time.

But I’ve come out the other side. I’ve had my operation, finished radiotherapy, and now I’m on hormone therapy. I feel so much more positive. My outlook on life has changed completely. I know who my real friends are now—my circle is smaller, but stronger. My family have been incredible. And my friends say I’m feistier now, in a good way. I think they’re right.

I even started running, which I never would have imagined before. And, strangely enough, there have been some positives physically too. My boobs are lifted now, and my scars look like little smiley faces. It sounds funny, but it helps. You cling to the positives wherever you can.

If someone came to me today with a brandnew diagnosis, I’d tell them to reach out for support—Maggie’s, courses, therapies, anything that helps you talk. I did a twoday Breast Cancer Now “Going Forward” course, and meeting other people who’d been through the same thing was amazing. You could talk for as long as you needed, and everyone understood. That connection, that mindfulness, that sense of finding your tribe—it makes such a difference.