Hello! Welcome to my fundraising page for Coppafeel! 

In November, I'll be trekking 100k across the Sahara desert, seeing in my 38th year under the stars with an amazing group of people, having the experience of a lifetime! I want to smash my target and raise as much money possible for this wonderful charity. So on top of the main, very hot and sandy event, I will be using this year to host a plethora of other fundraising events and challenges. I hope you will join me along the way.

But first, how did I get here? In December 2020 while showering, I found a lump. I couldn't believe that I hadn't felt it before, it was so obviously there! I felt oddly calm as I went to show my husband Matt and get his confirmation that I wasn't making this up. Yes, he agreed, it was definitely a lump. We rationalised and said things like, 'it can't be', 'there's just no way', but after the event, we both confessed that we knew deep down it was cancer. This might seem like a strange conclusion to jump to, but less than three months earlier, Matt had been diagnosed with stage 4 neuroendocrine cancer and was at that point, recovering from major bowel surgery. We knew it could happen and life as we knew it had already changed unrecognisably, so why not? 

After a trip to the GP, a two week referral, scans, biopsies and an agonising wait, it was confirmed that I had stage 3 breast cancer which had spread to my lymph nodes. More scans followed to see whether there was further spread and thankfully, there was not. Still, on meeting my oncologist, I was shocked at the shear amount and duration of my proposed treatment. Chemo started on the 1st February and after 14 rounds of two different (equally challenging) types of chemo, plus a three weekly injection of herceptin, my bald noggin and exhausted body had reached the chemo finish line by the beginning of June. A month of recovery to get my bloods back to a healthier level and I had a lumpectomy and node biopsy in July. Unfortunately, despite having a complete radiological response, they found active cancer in the tissue in the breast and in one lymph node, they also didn't get clear margins. So back to theatre I went to attempt achieving that clear margin and to remove all my lymph nodes. This time, success! As there was still active cancer, my treatment plan had to change and instead of continuing the three weekly injections of Herceptin until March 2022, I started on a targeted chemotherapy which required 14 rounds, every three weeks and will take me to June 2022. Another month of recovery after the second surgery and radiotherapy started in September, every weekday for four weeks. Alongside this, I started my hormone treatment, which consists of an injection that turns my ovaries off and a daily pill to stop any other cells in my body producing oestrogen. This has put me in a medically induced menopause, which at 37 isn't ideal! Anyway, all that detail is to say, it's been A LOT. And I want to do something to make sure fewer people have to experience this. As I come to the end of my treatment (which I know is a privileged position many do not get) I feel I'm ready to shout about my experience and do something positive for other young women, to make sure they are boob aware and find any lumps or bumps early and to ensure they don't feel alone if they are unfortunate enough to be diagnosed, both things that CoppaFeel! are experts at. Mostly I'm ready to do it for myself. BRING ON the training, the sand, the heat, the challenge, I can not wait!

Thank you for supporting me and my family and helping the wonderful charity that is CoppaFeel! It means so much. 

Lucy x

@my_bothersome_boob on Instagram 🙋🏻‍♀️

CoppaFeel! are the first UK breast cancer charity to create awareness amongst young people, with the aim to install a new healthy habit that could one day save a life. They are on a mission to stamp out late detection of breast cancer and ensure the nation is checking their boobs regularly. They want to educate people on the signs and symptoms of breast cancer, encourage them to get to know what is normal for them and empower young people to have the confidence to see a doctor if they notice anything that isn't right for them.