Georgie lives in the Cotswolds and has worked as a nanny for three young boys for the past six years. She has been with her now fiancé for 10 years and plays for a local softball team.
In June 2024, aged 29, I noticed a change in my right nipple. My cousin had just gone through breast cancer and was told she carried the PALB2 gene, so I was trying to make more of an effort to look at my breasts. Also, three of my aunties have also had breast cancer, and my youngest auntie sadly passed away from it aged 48.
I wouldn’t say I exactly knew what I was looking for, apart from a lump, which now I understand with Lobular you don’t always have. It came to my attention that my right nipple didn’t look quite the same as the other and was slightly inverted. I did an online doctor’s appointment and within the hour they rang and asked if I could come in to be examined. This completely freaked me out. I was diagnosed with severe health anxiety in August 2023, because of my family history of breast cancer. We lost my auntie in September 2022, My 32-year-old cousin followed a few months later after fighting bowel cancer, and my cousin’s youngest child, who was four-years-old, had been diagnosed with stage 4 neuroblastoma – thankfully she is currently doing really well.
At my GP appointment the doctor examined me and told me she wasn’t too concerned, but because of my family history she would refer me to the breast centre. The breast centre is an incredible place, everyone is so welcoming and friendly. I had this appointment three weeks later and, as soon as I lay down, the consultant said that she could feel a thickening. I’d never heard of this. I then had an ultrasound where they detected what they thought was a 5cm tumour. I was beyond devastated, scared… I can’t really put into words how I felt hearing the words, “I’m sorry but we think you have cancer”.
Due to the size of the tumor I was quickly booked in for an MRI and CT scans and had so many appointments with different people, including a fertility specialist, who knew that cancer was going to potentially damage my eggs. All the results took time to come back and it was a really awful time for me. Being so young and not knowing anyone my age who had been through breast cancer, I found it incredibly hard. Mentally and physically I didn’t cope too well. However, with some medication from the GP, support from my breast care nurses, my psychiatrist, my fiance Jon, and my family and friends, I got through it.
I was diagnosed with Stage 2 Invasive Lobular Breast Cancer at the end of July 2024. However, my CT scan was clear, which was a huge relief. They didn’t think it was in my lymph nodes as my biopsy from that came back clear. But they were going to be sure and take another biopsy during surgery to check. Being quite small boobed, and with a high family history of breast cancer, my surgeon decided the best option for me was to have a right sided mastectomy. I had this two weeks after, in a small local hospital. I’d never had surgery before, so again the health anxiety was at an all time high but the team was amazing and the surgery went well.
Unexpectedly, when I went back three weeks later, the biopsy they took from my lymph node came back with a macro amount of cancer. I was booked in four days later to have a full lymph node clearance in my right armpit. This again devastated me as I was told my lymph nodes were clear.
The second surgery also went well, however I did develop a 250ml seroma which I had drained twice, and some cording which I’ve had physiotherapy for. Another pathology report showed I had more nodes with cancer than without. This meant I had a EC-P dose dense chemotherapy, followed by 15 lots of radiotherapy. I feel like my body coped well with the treatment. I had a few rubbish days, but managed to still do things I wanted to.
I’ve finished my treatment and am now on Exemestane, a hormone therapy drug, for 10 years with monthly Zoladex injections. I am also due to start a low dose chemo drug in May called abemciclib. I will need more surgery in the future, as I also have the PALB2 gene, so will have my left boob removed and hopefully have a double reconstruction.
I am hoping to get back to work fairly soon, but not as much as before. I want to see some places, do some fundraising, help others and enjoy life!