Jennie was diagnosed with breast cancer almost 30 years ago. At the time, she had a radical mastectomy and didn’t have a reconstruction operation until about 10 years ago. She opted for reconstruction as she found wearing a breast prosthesis uncomfortable, heavy and hot and opted for the reconstruction.

Jennie also had colon cancer, with a number of complications from the colon resection, mainly a large and painful abscess. She has a prolapsed bladder with a suprapubic catheter, and had about 10 years of being constantly in and out of hospital.

Being ill and fatigued for so long meant that she lost touch with some friends, which was lonely at times. Her partner found it difficult to cope with her being ill, and went out a lot when she was unable to leave the house. She thinks that it was also very difficult and frightening for her daughters to see her going through cancer.

Jennie still sometimes gets worried when she has her five yearly checkups. Sometimes she still thinks about cancer, and when she is awake in the night, she worries that it might be coming back. However, she feels very lucky to not have experienced recurrence of either cancer.

After the mastectomy she joined a local support group for people affected by cancer, and found it to be quite helpful. She left when she felt better, and didn’t want to spend time with people who were ill. At the time she was diagnosed, Jennie tried to be very brave, then about 18 months after the breast cancer diagnosis broke down in tears. Her advice to people going through cancer is to try not to be too brave, to just look after yourself, and to cry if you want to.