A mum says she is "so lucky to be alive" after missing a critical hospital date - because she did not want to put pressure on the NHS. Julie Humphrey, 55, found a lump in her breast but waited five months for a scan.
An initial appointment was cancelled and, because it was during Covid, Julie feared overworking doctors. But when she was finally seen she was told she had an aggressive tumour - and it needed to be removed right away.
Julie, from Sittingbourne, Kent, is now speaking out to encourage other people to listen to their bodies. She said: "I don't think I'd have survived if it hadn't been taken out when it was.
"It was grade three and they told me if they'd left it any longer it would have spread into my breast bone and the rest of my body very quickly. I'm so lucky to be alive.
"But I really wish I'd gone to the hospital or the doctor sooner because it wouldn't have got so big. I wouldn't have had such a big operation and all the treatment afterwards."
Julie, a mum-of-two, noticed the lump in her breast in February 2020. She had a mammogram booked for March but it was then cancelled due to the pandemic.
Julie didn't feel she could push for a scan because medics were so busy, and she could not face the possibility that she had cancer. She went for her rescheduled scan in July and was called back just a few days later.
Doctors at her local hospital in Maidstone then diagnosed cancer before the biopsy results came back. Julie said: "I didn't want to disturb doctors who were already overstretched and I convinced myself it would probably be okay.
"Even in the first month I could feel it getting bigger every day. I was getting more and more tired and the lump was getting bigger. I knew something wasn't right and became more and more worried it was cancer.
"I was trying to trick myself that everything was okay. When they told me I couldn't take it in - it was unreal like it was happening in a film.
"All I can say is if you see a lump get it checked as soon as possible: it might be nothing but it also might be something like this. Don't wait - I never thought this would happen to me, I was so shocked.
"After the biopsy and loads of scans they started putting in these titanium markers and talking about my op. I said 'it's cancer isn't it?' and they just said 'yes.' I was so upset and shocked and it was all such a rush I couldn't even register it. All I felt was panic and fear. It was awful."
Julie had to self-isolate for two weeks before the op - and in that time the tumour grew three centimetres. She had the lump removed in August, and doctors were able to save her breast.
She then had two weeks of radiotherapy and was given chemo tablets for ten years. She said: "Self-isolating was the worst time ever! I'll never forget it.
"It was so lonely and scary. I knew this thing was growing inside me and threatening my life. Julie worked as a massage therapist and had to quit during treatment.
She now volunteers at a friend's laundry business. She said: "Giving up work was one of the hardest parts. It leaves you just sitting at home worrying.
"Every time I have pain now I'm afraid it's coming back. The tablets I take and the radiotherapy have given me arthritis so my joints ache.
"I took HRT for menopause, and I can't say for sure it contributed, but the tumour I had was related to oestrogen levels. Go for routine mammograms as soon as you get that appointment, and ask the doctor straight away if you notice anything.
"Check weekly, and be aware that men can get breast cancer too. I was scared to face it, but it's not worth waiting - think of your future and your family."
