You never think at 32 it will happen to you.. but it’s happening to loads of young people
RADIO star Georgie Crawford has revealed she is determined to fight breast cancer after being diagnosed with the disease aged 32.
The Spin 103.8 entertainment editor was told the dreaded news when her baby girl Pia was just seven months old.
Georgie said: “I breastfed Pia for five months and when I was getting ready to go back to work I found a lump on my breast in the middle of the night.
“I was diagnosed with breast cancer the next week.
“There was no cancer in my family and I breastfed so I thought it would never ever happen to me. I wasn’t breast aware, it wasn’t on my to-do list to have a check after having a baby.”
The popular Dublin radio star is urging young women to be on their guard about the disease.
She told the Irish Mirror: “When I got cancer I was so shocked I’d lie in bed repeating to myself, ‘I have cancer, I have cancer’.
“You just never think at the age of 32 this is going to happen to you, but it’s happening to loads of young people.
“This is why I decided to speak out to urge young girls to check their breasts. I still had stage two breast cancer but it hadn’t spread to my lymph nodes.” Georgie appealed for new mums to make their health a top priority.
She added: “When you first have a baby you are on the bottom of your to-do list, baby comes first, then your husband and you don’t have a clue what you’re doing.
“You don’t get a smear because you can’t get a babysitter and you don’t get your moles checked, but you need to be on top of your health and make yourself a priority.
“I was diagnosed in October and had surgery two weeks later to remove the cancer and I was really lucky it hadn’t spread.
“After I had my surgery they told me I’d need 22 weeks of chemotherapy and four weeks of radiotherapy.”
Panicked that chemo would make her infertile Georgie took action and got her eggs frozen. She said: “I had a few weeks while I healed from my surgery and did IVF so we have 14 embryos up in the Beacon.
“They told me there was an 80% chance after chemo that my fertility would come back but I couldn’t risk it.”
The inspiring mum started treatment on December 18 and was told she’d lose her hair on the first week of January.
She admitted: “Losing your
hair is a small price to pay for being alive, but when they tell you you’re going to lose it there’s always that small bit of hope that maybe the chemo they give you won’t.
“The thoughts of losing it was worse than the reality and seeing it falling out was very tough.
“So I decided to shave it all off and I had a gorgeous night up in my house with my nearest and dearest. My hairdresser who was there on my wedding day came up.
“We had lovely candles and nice music and shaved my head and once it was done I could move on.”
Georgie said her one-year-old daughter helps her face the day.
She added: “Pia gets me up every morning and she forces me to face the day. She’s the first thing I think about in the morning, not the fact I’ve got cancer.
“I was determined not to let this cancer take away from her first year.
“It was such a disaster in my life to get it but when I found out it hadn’t spread I was determined to focus on the silver lining and getting better.
“I’ve tried every day to be positive and when Pia goes to bed I can fall apart with my husband Jamie.”
Georgie is battling it out against a whole host of celebs for Battle Of The Stars in aid of Breast Cancer Ireland on April 14 at Dublin’s Clayton
Hotel.
She said: “It’s nice for me to get out and see people and have a bit of craic and raise awareness at the same time, there are great people doing it like Holly Carpenter and James Patrice.
“I rehearse for one hour a week and they’re really considerate of how I’m feeling and they tell me to take it at my own pace.
“I’m doing the cha cha and it’s hard to learn the steps and I’ve never been that co-ordinated but we’re having such fun.”
You need to be on top of your health and make yourself a priority
GEORGIE CRAWFORD
YESTERDAY