‘THE FATIGUE IS RELENTLESS’
KIRSTY Brade was diagnosed with breast cancer in August 2015 when she was aged just 27.
She underwent a lumpectomy, chemotherapy and radiotherapy with Herceptin medication.
The treatment was considered successful but Kirsty, a supermarket merchandiser, said no one had warned her about life after breast cancer.
She admitted she still struggled with tiredness and worries that the cancer might return any time.
She said: “There was no warning given to me that years after I’d finished hospital treatment I still may not have bounced back.
“No one told me the cancer could return, or what to look for. Instead I ended up Googling alone at 2am when I couldn’t sleep. No one prepared me for how bad the long-term effects could be.
“I’m now a 30-year-old living with relentless fatigue. After the hurdles of treatment I thought ‘now I’ll start feeling better’, but it just hasn’t happened.
“I don’t think about my life beyond breast cancer, as there is so much to overcome first.”
Kirsty, of Silsden, West Yorks, added: “I, physically, cannot work full-time. It takes me at least a day to recover from something as simple as meeting up with friends.
“Sometimes even getting up the stairs is a struggle, yet the support I need still gets brushed aside. You don’t go back to normal. This can just be the beginning – information and support are essential.”
Doctors said she is no longer displaying signs of the condition.