Screening makes a difference, says cancer survivor

A breast cancer patient who says a mammogram likely saved her life has urged people to attend routine screening appointments.

Shirley, 69, from Cambridge, was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer following her screening in October and underwent surgery about a month later.

She was told her cancer had been removed while being featured on a live Channel 4 TV programme.

"I can't stress enough how vital it is to go [to the appointment] when you're invited," said Shirley.

"I had no symptoms at all, but that mammogram found the cancer early. If I hadn't gone, who knows how far it could have progressed."

Her journey was shared on Channel 4's Cancer Clinic Live, filmed at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge on 12 December - part of the broadcaster's Stand Up To Cancer campaign.

She was told the cancer had been completely removed. She will begin radiotherapy and will have to take medication for five years.

Reflecting on her experience with a mix of relief and disbelief, Shirley said: "I still cannot get my head around the fact that somebody I had never met before, looked inside my body and saw something I didn't know was there."

She said she "forgot the cameras were there" as her results were revealed.

Shirley said she kept the news of her diagnosis from others for two days as she tried to "get my head around it", but she was "grateful" for the swift treatment.

"My daughter was on holiday, my son lives in Japan, and I lost my husband last year," she said.

"Then I had to sit them down and tell them. I felt awful for dumping that news on them, but they rallied round me really well.

"From finding out to having the operation in just six weeks - it was amazing.

"If I had left it any longer, who knows how much further it could have gone."

Shirley's story was one of several highlighted on the show, including Peter from Peterborough.

A cancerous nodule was discovered on his lung following a routine appointment, as a result of the national lung cancer screening programme rolled out by the North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust.

On live television, Peter learned he was now cancer free after successful surgery at the Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge.

Dr Hugo Ford, director of cancer services at Addenbrooke's Hospital, said: "Shirley and Peter's experiences highlight why it's so important to take up screening invitations when they arrive."

Shirley, a retired grandmother, said she was "quite apprehensive about radiotherapy".

"But I can't do anything about it myself. I just have to rely on the people who know what they're doing. I am just relieved I don't have to go through chemotherapy," she said.

The former Tesco worker, who enjoys knitting, meeting friends and spending time with her grandson, hopes more people will attend timely screening appointments.

"Just do it. You get the call, you deal with it. I booked my mammogram within 10 minutes of picking up the letter," she said.

"Early detection really does make all the difference."

According to recent NHS data, the proportion of patients in England diagnosed with cancer at an early stage has risen to its highest level on record.

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