6. STARTING CHEMO AND RADIOTHERAPY

I WON’T lie: I was terrified of chemotherapy. I was scared of how ill I’d feel and whether I’d lose my hair.

Over each six-week cycle I had one good week, then one bad. I managed it by building in a treat for the good weeks — dinner with friends or a night away with Sam. My mum was a tower of strength, too (above).

I also had another operation to try to save my ovaries: while the radiotherapy meant I would be going into early menopause, this surgery gave me a chance to continue to produce eggs.

I woke after another three-hour operation to be told doctors had managed to save one ovary, so if the harvested embryos don’t work, all is not lost. Sam and I registered with Surrogacy UK, and found there is a long waiting list. Still . . . it was a start.