Welcome to my fundraising page for CoppaFeel!

This June, I will set out on a challenging and (hopefully) extraordinary and life-changing trek, all in the name of checking chests. Along with around 100 others, Gi Fletcher and a few famous faces as group leaders, I will be trekking approximately 100km across 5 days in Bannau Brycheiniog - the Brecon Beacons - in a bid to raise funds towards CoppaFeel!'s life-saving mission.

Your donations will not only support my fundraising target, but most importantly CoppaFeel!. They are on a mission to stamp out the late diagnosis of breast cancer by making sure that young people are regularly checking their boobs, pecs and chests and getting to know their bodies in order to have the confidence to see their GP if something just doesn't feel normal.

I was diagnosed with breast cancer in September 2020. A week after my initial diagnosis a CT scan showed that it had already spread to my spine and ribs, which means it is Stage IV and treatable, but incurable. At that time I hardly dared imagine I'd be here now, and certainly not feeling well enough to be contemplating a 100K walk in the Bannau, but - thanks to science and researchers - here I am, still doing the work I love, making the most of every moment with my friends and family, and imagining the views from the summit of Pen y Fan. My joints are stiff, achy and painful from the medication I am permanently on, but I walk the South Downs with the dog, go to the gym, and I reckon they will make it.

I will almost certainly have my life cut short. I was diagnosed at 52, I'm 55 now, and reaching 60 is not at all guaranteed. I have already passed the average (3 year) life expectancy for people with Secondary / Metastatic breast cancer. It is a devastating diagnosis and has had a profound and terrible impact on my and my beloved family's lives, though we are living now filled with love and determination. And one of the further devastating things has been meeting so many utterly brilliant women in the same boat, so many of them much younger than me, often with young families, and whose future plans have been taken away by this disease.

All too often I hear stories of how they have been turned away by doctors believing them too young, for their cancer only to be found when it's too late. This is why this year I'm supporting Coppafeel! - knowledge and the capacity to self-advocate is power. Not only that, but Coppafeel! is one of the few breast cancer campaigners to consistently focus on supporting LGBTQ+ communities, which means so much to me. Their work truly saves lives.

The more money I can raise the bigger my motivation will be to reach those Welsh peaks (especially if the Welsh weather means the view may not be as spectacular as I'm hoping for). I'm so aware that money is tight right now, but please please help, as little or much as you can!

Thanks so much for your donation & support.

Keep in touch!

To find out more about Secondary Breast Cancer, I try to raise awareness via my Instagram page, @secondary.psych - give me a follow.

You can also get updates on my trekking training and a bit about living with SBC in a Facebook event 'Helen's 100k trek for Coppafeel!'. It's a private group so message me via Messenger to join.

To find out more about CoppaFeel! head to www.coppafeel.org.