Mother could not cuddle her son...
She recalls the impact breast cancer treatment had on her life
A MOTHER has spoken movingly of how breast cancer treatment left her unable to pick up her baby son to give him a cuddle.
Helen Tomlinson hopes her story will urge more patients to sign up to a pioneering rehabilitation programme which helped her rebuild her life.
The 39-year-old from Loughborough underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy after being diagnosed with an aggressive form of the disease in 2016.
Her daughter, May, was four and her son Hughie was just 11-months-old when she and husband, Steve, received the bombshell of her diagnosis from doctors.
Helen said: “When I was told I had cancer, the only thing I thought about was the children and getting through it so that I could see them grow up. What never crossed my mind was how it would affect me in the future.
“The treatment left me weak and exhausted and painful scar tissue significantly restricted my movement.
“Hughie was toddling by then and he’d put his hands up to me, asking me to pick him up, but I physically couldn’t because it hurt too much.
“He was so little and all he wanted me to do was hold him, especially if he had fallen over or was upset. It was heartbreaking to have to say ‘no’ and it was so hard to explain to him because he was so little.”
Through a friend she heard of Supporting Confidence Through Exercise, a Leicestershire-based charity which runs one of the UK’s few rehabilitation programmes for survivors of breast cancer.
‘In the Pink’ is a free, eightweek-long course which helps patients get back to fitness using gentle pilates-based stretches, as well as less ortho-
dox exercises like belly dancing, Nordic walking and African drumming.
“After cancer treatment, your body changes and you wonder if you’ll ever be the same again. I found it affected my confidence and I know for some women it makes them feel self-
conscious. Not being sporty, I was apprehensive about the exercise aspect. But I can honestly say I enjoyed every session. It’s changed my life. My posture is better, I feel stronger, fitter, healthier and more positive.
“And now I can pick up my little boy and give him a hug. It’s a simple thing but for any parent it is so important and precious.”
Helen, an academic researcher, is now on the road to recovery.
“It’s been tough but in some ways, I’ve been fortunate. Because there is a history of cancer in my family, I was referred for genetic profiling a few years ago. The geneticist told me that having looked at my results, he was concerned about my risk of breast cancer.
“He wrote a letter to my GP asking them to start screening me at 40. Because that letter was on my file – I was 37 when I was diagnosed - when I went to the doctors with some symptoms, they sent me for an urgent ultrasound scan.”
The next In the Pink programme starts in Mountsorrel in October. It is funded by a SHIRE Community Grant from Leicestershire County Council. Michelle Scott-Worthing- ton, founder of SCTE, said: “When Helen stood up to tell her story at one of our recent fund-raisers, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house, especially when Hughie ran through the crowd to give his mummy a cuddle.
“Just like her, many women who come through cancer treatment find it has left them with other issues which are not life-threatening, but which make day-to-day life more difficult.
“It might be that they can’t reach up to a cupboard to get a mug, or that they can’t stretch to be able to put a bra on.
“The message we give people through In the Pink is that you don’t have to accept that, that you can regain movement and work towards a fitter future.
“We thank Helen for talking so openly about her experience and hope that her story will inspire other patients to come forward and sign up for the next course.”