Maya's Race for Life

Well hey there, I’m Maya, I am a proud breast cancer survivor and this is my victory story. Almost 4 years ago I found a lump in my breast and, after some extremely quick testing, I received the diagnosis that ground my life to a halt: "Miss Rainey, I can confirm the initial suspicions that you have breast cancer, and we have also found that there are some small tumors in your lymph nodes." My 27 year old self knew that these words were going to mean pressing a huge pause button on my crazy life for the following year - which had somehow coincided with the important decision just 6 weeks earlier to move home to the UK after living in Spain for 5 years. Meant to be? Definitely. Someone up there definitely got me to the right place at the right time, for perhaps the first time in my life! So, I thank my lucky stars that when I found the lump I was at home and in a position to be treated and cared for so amazingly. If it weren't for the support of my family, friends and of course fantastic medical team - I wouldn't be here today. "I wouldn't be here today." That, in itself, is an immensely overwhelming thought and one that, admittedly, still haunts me while I am trying to rebuild a new life. I was literally knocking on death's door, unsure whether I was ever going to return home. Thanks to cancer research- through Cancer Research UK, among other reasearch companies - I was able to receive treatment that allowed me to recover from my breast cancer, and live to tell my story. During that first year my team and I decided to participate despite being in the middle of radiotherapy - the final invasive part of my treatment - and managed to raise an incredible amount of money, over £2,000. This year if we could raise even a small portion of that again, I will feel proud to know that we have contributed to funding the research that may save someone's life - like it did mine. My team name is My Kinda Race and they are the incredible women who have stood and currently stand by my side to fight the hardest battle of my life to date. If you manage to sponsor any one of us, I would like to thank you in advance, as you will be helping to save someone's life. If you can’t donate, I would still like to thank you for reading my story and hopefully you can help spread awareness that cancer can happen to anyone at any time. 1 in 2 people will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. Every single pound you donate makes a difference to Cancer Research UK’s groundbreaking work, so please sponsor me now. Donating through this page is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with Cancer Research UK.