A MUM has revealed being diagnosed with breast cancer during her pregnancy “saved” her – and she is now expecting her second child who is due next month.
Sarah Boyd, 33, who works at luxury spa hotel Stobo Castle and lives in the Scottish Borders, first discovered a small lump to the side of her right breast in January 2020.
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She admitted she ignored the lump because she was “scared” to confront the truth that it was likely breast cancer.
“I’m the taboo that’s not really spoken about because I had a lump for a really long time and never dealt with it,” Sarah said.
“For me, it wasn’t a case of, ‘Today I found a lump and today I’m phoning the doctors’, I waited almost eight months.”
Sarah is the fifth generation in her family to carry the altered BRCA gene, which significantly raises someone’s risk of developing cancer.
But it was only after falling pregnant and later noticing “disturbing” brown-coloured discharge leaking from her right nipple, that she phoned and visited her GP on August 5, 2020 at 15 weeks pregnant.
She was then referred for further tests and scans on August 20, which revealed she had triple negative breast cancer and she was told she needed to undergo chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
Sarah was fearful that she and her partner Harry, 35, a gym manager, “may have to terminate the baby”, but they were reassured by doctors early on that their child was “safe” due to the placenta protecting the foetus.
Reflecting on her journey, she said: “The hardest part was telling my mum.
“My parents drove to the hospital, which was 40 minutes away, and they met me outside in the car park – and that can only be described as a movie scene.
“We ran towards each other and we fell on the grass. I just couldn’t stand up.”
The results of the biopsy later confirmed Sarah had triple negative breast cancer and a 5.5cm lump, and she was advised she would need to start chemotherapy as soon as possible.
While she was fearful about the impact this might have on her unborn child and her own life, the couple were reassured that their baby was safe.
“I didn’t know what might or might not happen with me, or the baby, or the labour – I had no idea what that looked like,” she said.
“But just telling me that actually, ‘No, you can still have your treatment and stay pregnant’, was amazing.”
Sarah started having chemotherapy every three weeks from September 16, and then once a week, up until December 20 when she had a break from treatment to give birth.
While she had lost her hair and had “dark thoughts”, such as “what if I’m not here?”, she was supported and “comforted” by her loved ones, and said journaling helped her through it.
“I journaled to almost talk to the baby, explaining what we were doing and what was happening, just in case I wasn’t here,” she explained.
Sarah has since given birth to her “perfect” son Oscar, who is now two, been given the all clear, and is now expecting her second child who is due in October this year.
She said: “When Oscar was born, I just couldn’t believe how healthy he was and how he just looked like a normal baby.
“He didn’t have horns or he didn’t have an extra limb – all the things that I thought he was going to have because of chemotherapy.
“Oscar will always have this ‘me and you went through that’ relationship, and I’ve said this many times, but I believe being pregnant saved me.”
Sarah said she is now focusing on “enjoying every moment” with her family and not taking anything for granted, as her journey could have been “very different”.
She has had another mastectomy on her left breast in June 2022 and is planning to have a hysterectomy – a surgical procedure to remove the womb – later on to prevent reoccurrence of cancer.
And while she “cannot find the words to explain why (she) waited” to call the GP, she is urging others not to ignore their symptoms.
“For me, it could have been a much shorter journey, it could have been an easier journey, I could have not been pregnant,” Sarah said.
“There are so many scenarios and ifs and buts, and hindsight is a horrible thing, it can destroy you, but I feel very lucky that I managed to get through it all.
“I hope that everybody is encouraged to get their symptoms checked because the sooner you deal with anything, the better your chances are.”
Sarah is supporting Breast Cancer Now and its fundraising prize draw with Omaze, which includes a giveaway of a £3.5 million house in Scotland, along with £100,000 in cash.
To find out more, visit: omaze.co.uk
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