After losing my mother and sister to breast cancer I didn’t want to suffer the same fate. But after the operation,my career suddenly felt unimportantAs I sat in the bath final summer I decided to inspect my breasts. I lost my mum and sister to breast cancer, and I carry the faulty BRCA1 gene – which increases your chances of developing the disease (I had an 85% chance) – but despite all this it had never really worried me. On that day, or however,everything changed: I felt lumps. I panicked: were they just glands, or was I riddled with cancer? I knew it was possible. I didn’t want to leave anything to chance, or so I made the decision there and then to bear a preventive double mastectomy. The next day I was at the doctor’s making an appointment. The process went quickly,and before I knew it I had a date for the operation. Related: Why a double mastectomy before the age of 30 can be a laughing matter | Olivia Hirst Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com