Lisa King:

40, director — consumer and health care practice, Asdaa, British

“I first noticed a lump six months before I was diagnosed at the age of 35 which my doctor said was nothing to worry about so I completely forgot about it until I noticed the lump again.

“I was diagnosed with Grade 1 breast cancer in 2013. I was lucky it wasn’t aggressive and they managed to catch it at a very early stage. It was a massive shock. I never expected to be walking out of there with a cancer diagnosis. I was in no pain, I was the fittest I had ever been, I was running 10km. I didn’t feel unhealthy or anything. There was no indication at all, maybe it’s fate that I just happened to notice it again and wanted to have it checked.

“Getting rid of cancer isn’t a quick process. Luckily, I didn’t have to have chemotherapy, but I had a lumpectomy to have it removed, followed by a six week course of radiotherapy — which is every week day, and three years on tamoxifen.

“I felt very lucky that it was one of the most treatable forms of breast cancer. For me, the whole experience gave me an entirely different perspective. When I was in London, I worked very long hours, I was single and focused on my career and I don’t think I really had the right work-life balance. “

So King embraced her life with new enthusiasm and met her husband on a skiing holiday. She participated in a gruelling bike challenge to raise £10,000 (Dh48,314) for the Royal Marsden Hospital for breast cancer research.

“For me, cancer has been an extremely positive thing. I got married, we moved to Dubai three years ago, and we’re now expecting our first baby in November.”