Melksham mum and her sister support Cancer Research campaign

LOCAL mum Kate Evans and her sister Amy Buller have said they are closer than ever after a life-changing experience of a breast cancer diagnosis just weeks apart from each other.

Kate Evans from Melksham, and her younger sister Amy Buller from Bath, admit to having had little in common, but all that changed last Christmas when both found out they had breast cancer.

Now they are backing Cancer Research UK’s ‘Right Now’ campaign, which launched with a series of ground-breaking adverts on Boxing Day.

The powerful and emotive ‘Right Now’ TV, poster and radio campaign launched with a TV advert. It aims to show the reality of cancer for patients just like them, their friends and family.

As a new year starts, Kate and Amy reflect on their personal experience over the past year. Amy, a keen roller derby player was taking part in a match last September when she got hit in the chest. She said,  “Roller derby is a physical sport and so when I took a massive hit I thought it was just tissue damage.  But after about a month I went to see my doctor who took one look at it and referred me straight away to the breast clinic at the RUH.”

After several weeks of tests it was confirmed that Amy had cancer. Her dad phoned Amy’s sister Kate to break the news. But one night when Kate was in bed at 2am, she was unable to sleep worried about Amy.

Kate said, “I felt my breasts and my left breast was rock hard and thought it must be the button in the mattress. How on this earth I could have breast cancer too was just too weird.

“My GP wasn’t too concerned but when I said about my sister’s diagnosis, I was referred for a mammogram and then an ultrasound.

“I got my cancer diagnosis on December 23rd, just as Amy had started her chemo.”

Amy continued, “I was able to cope with my own diagnosis as I thought I was strong but when I was told that Kate was ill too I just felt that I had been hit by a freight train – that was the first time I cried.”

Their initial treatment was exactly the same, six rounds of chemotherapy, followed by surgery and then radiotherapy treatment. But Amy had a double mastectomy as she had a different type of breast cancer to her sister.

“It is a weird way to get closer because as sisters we are very different in our personalities. I am happy with my own company whereas Amy loves people around all the time,” Kate said.

“We were able to share cancer stories because nobody understands until they go through it and this experience has definitely brought us closer together.”

Kate added, “The last few months have been hard for all of us, but I’m only here now because my sister had breast cancer too. I may not have checked myself had Amy not been diagnosed and I feel this has brought us a lot closer together.”

Alison Birkett, Cancer Research UK spokesperson for the South West, said, “We are so grateful to Kate and Amy for sharing their cancer story.

“There are many moments which encapsulate a person’s cancer journey and our ‘Right Now’ campaign aims to shine a light on the reality of cancer.

“Every hour, around three people are diagnosed with cancer in the South West. That’s why we’re working every day to find new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat the disease. But we can’t do it alone. We hope our new campaign will inspire people to take action, right now, and play their part in beating cancer sooner.”

Cancer Research UK’s new ‘Right Now’ campaign launches with a TV advert on Boxing Day. For more information on how to help beat cancer sooner, visit www.cruk.org