HOLIDAY WITH DAUGHTER AND LOOKS FORWARD TO BIG NIGHT
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married to Hugh, had surgery to remove a 5cm tumour from her breast, followed by chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
After almost a year of treatment, she was told she was cancer-free.
She said: “When the treatment was finished, I went back to work and did my best to put breast cancer behind me.
“At first I felt like I was living with this black cloud over me but, as time went on, I thought I had really beaten this.”
Trish’s back f irst started to feel sore in November 2011. She went to her GP, who diagnosed a bulging disc near the bottom of her spine.
Over the next 12 months, Trish took powerful painkillers, visited a chiropractor and regularly saw a physiotherapist but nothing helped.
She said: “I remember asking my GP if it could have anything to do with my breast cancer but he had carried out blood tests and said no. The pain got so bad I would be in tears if I had to sit down.
“I would stand up in restaurants to eat. We went on holiday to Egypt and I had to stand the whole way, only sitting down for the take- off and landing. And if I had to go in the car, I would lie flat out across the back seat.”
Trish said when the pain disappeared on her trip to India, she convinced herself it must be her bed at home that was the cause of her agony.
She said: “We were staying with a Tibetan family and my bed was just a wooden board with the thinnest possible mattress. My back felt fine. So when I got home, I ordered a new bed but the pain was already back.”
Trish was finally diagnosed with a tumour on her spine after a new physio and her chiropractor raised concerns something was seriously wrong.
She said: “At my next physio appointment, my usual physio was on holiday so I saw a young student who asked me if I could walk on my heels and when I couldn’t, he said he was going to write to my GP and ask for me to get my back scanned.”
Trish attended hospital and the next day received a call from the Beatson Cancer Centre advising her she was to be admitted to hospital that afternoon.
She said: “When the Beatson call and ask you to come in, you don’t have to be a lawyer to work out what’s going on.”
Tests revealed the tumour at the bottom of her spine was as a result of her previous breast cancer having spread to the bone. She was told there was no cure for secondary breast cancer.
Trish said: “At the time, no one told me anything positive and I was sure I had been given an imminent death sentence. But almost five years on, I’m still here.
“I was put on steroids which almost instantly took away the pain. I’m now on bone strengthening medicine and I feel great. I’ve learned to really live for the moment.”
In the years since her secondary diagnosis, Trish has witnessed her daughters get married, been on wonderful holidays and celebrated the births of two granddaughters.
In October, she will appear as a model in the Breast Cancer Care Scotland Fashion Show.
Breast Cancer Care are the only specialist UK-wide support charity for people affected by breast cancer.
They provide a range of services across Scotland, including specialist nurses and face- to- face services such as Living With Secondary Breast Cancer sessions.
These bring women with secondary breast cancer together and offer the chance to speak to experts so they feel more supported.
Trish said: “In the future, I want my grandchildren to look back and see photos of me doing fun things. And I want to show other people that even with a secondary breast cancer diagnosis, you can still achieve so much.” Tickets are on sale for the Breast Cancer Care Scotland Fashion Show at the Hilton Hotel in Glasgow on October 26.
The charity are celebrating 15 years of the show, which this
Sunday Mail
year takes place during Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
For tickets, email TheShowScotland@ breastcancercare.org. uk or call 0345 077 1892.
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