Debbie Hindle's Walk for Life

Last year Eric Idle told the world that he'd had pancreatic cancer and that he'd called his cancer Kenny to make it less threatening. I loved this. My breast cancer immediately became Kenny too. Get lost Kenny .................... ................ I found my lump last July. I wasn't surprised. I'd found it early and I knew that treatment had improved massively since my mum and gran had had it. But what did surprise me was the diagnosis and the length of treatment I'd have to go through. I have triple negative breast cancer which affects about 15% of patients. This sneaky little Kenny doesn't respond to drugs like Tamoxifen and can come back more often. But it doesn't like chemo, so the treatment is four types of chemo in 16 sessions over a four-to five-month period, followed by surgery. In January I rang the bell to mark the end of my chemo. My lump had shrunk so much I couldn't feel it any more. I had my operation in February and I now have the results. I can confirm I am now cancer free!. The chemo has worked, Kenny is no more. In April I had radiotherapy which was my final treatment before the Race for Life in May. I was inspired to take part in the race by my amazing friend Lin Limbrey, who has been crushing her own Kenny for a long time. She keeps me laughing even while she is going through some very tough times herself. When I was diagnosed, I was most reassured by the knowledge that there have been so many improvements in treatments. Even as I was having chemo, I was reading about new drugs and initiatives that will help people in the future. That's down to the work of organisations like Cancer Research UK which has a clear vision of: "making discoveries, driving progress and bringing hope." I know for Lin and I, and everyone else who faces a cancer diagnosis, the fact this great work is being done brings us immense reassurance and hope. Thank you so much for contributing.