Breast Cancer Now: Don’t Delay Seeking Help
Jess Hibbert delayed a GP appointment because life was just too busy – she’s now urging others not to do the same…
“I saw my GP in the nick of time”
“In December 2022, I was reaching up to the top of my wardrobe when I felt something odd in my right breast,” explains mum-of-two Jess Hibbert (42).
“I checked and found a lump but Christmas was fast approaching and life was really busy. I convinced myself it was just a cyst and tried to forget about it.”
When the lump was still there at the start of 2023, Jess made an appointment to see her GP.
“I was still determined it couldn’t possibly be breast cancer,” says Jess.
“In fact, I was worried about wasting my GP’s time. I fully expected to be given antibiotics to get rid of the cyst but instead my GP referred me to hospital for tests.
“I was still relentlessly positive. For my children’s sake and my parents’ sake, it wasn’t going to be bad news. It couldn’t be.”
Just over a month later, Jess was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer.
“I was completely shell-shocked,” Jess recalls.
“Weirdly, I wasn’t scared for me but I was scared for my kids, who were only 10 and 12. How was my cancer diagnosis going to affect them? And I was worried about my parents. How was I going to tell them I had breast cancer?
“I was also annoyed. I’d made so many plans for 2023 and they were all going to have to be postponed until after my treatment had been successfully completed.”
Jess’ consultant explained that the cancer was classed as Grade 3 but didn’t appear to have spread – yet.
“The consultant also told me that triple negative breast cancer is very fast-acting and, although the tumour was small, the cancer cells were on the move,” explains Jess.
“If I’d waited another week to contact my GP, the cancer might have moved to my lymph glands and progressed to grade 4, which is incurable. I’d gone to my GP in the nick of time.”
Jess’s breast nurse, Valerie, explained her treatment plan and talked her through every step.
“Once I knew what was going to happen, I had a long chat with my children,” says Jess.
“The unknown is terrifying so I’d waited until I had something concrete to tell them before breaking the news.
“I made a pact with my kids that they could ask me anything about the cancer and I’d tell them the truth and, in return, they would be honest with me about their feelings and concerns. We expanded that pact to our family and our friends in the hope that would take away some of their worries, too.”
In March, 2023, Jess started six months of chemotherapy accompanied by immunotherapy.
“That was really gruelling,” admits Jess, who then underwent surgery.
“The chemotherapy had been very effective but I needed to have the area where the cancer had been and the tissues around it removed,” she explains.
“During this procedure – a lumpectomy – I also had my right boob rebuilt using tissue from my back.
“After surgery, I was given a course of preventative radiotherapy, to make sure every last speck of cancer had been caught.”
Jess admits that it was a difficult time.
“However, I was cocooned by the love and support of my children, my amazing family and my friends,” she adds.
“I’m a member of a really tight group of girl friends, ‘The Thursday Club’ because, when we were in our twenties, we’d get together every Thursday night to watch the latest episode of Friends.
“When I was undergoing treatment, I received a weekly bouquet of flowers with a card saying ‘Love Always, The Thursday Club’. Knowing my friends were thinking about me and were there for me, whatever happened, helped me so much. I’m very lucky to have such great friends.”
Over two years since her diagnosis, Jess is fit, healthy – and cancer-free.
“The next five years are critical but I’m doing everything I can to protect myself,” says Jess. “I’m doing lots of exercise, including swimming 10 miles to raise funds for Breast Cancer Now, as well as eating really healthily, getting lots of sleep and being kind to myself.
“Having breast cancer completely changed my outlook on life. This experience has been a massive reality check. I no longer stress about things I can’t control. I spend as much time as possible with my kids and my parents.
“I fundraise as a way of saying thank you for the treatment I received.
I’m trying to do as much as I possibly can with my life as I’m eternally grateful that I made it to the other side.
“I tell every woman I know to check their boobs on the first day of every month. That’s so important – and if you find something unusual, don’t worry about making a fuss or wasting your GP’s time.
“If I’d not gone to my GP when I did, it would one hundred per cent have been a different outcome.”
Make time for TLC
“It’s vital that women attend their breast screening appointments when invited and regularly check their breasts to get to know their normal,” says Manveet Basra, associate director of public health, inclusion and awareness at Breast Cancer Now.
“Checking your breasts is as simple as TLC: Touch, Look, Check. There’s no special technique and it only takes a few minutes.
“Remember to check the whole breast area, up to your armpits and collarbone (upper chest) for any changes.
“While many women know that a lump can be a possible symptom of breast cancer, there are other signs of the disease to look for. These include nipple discharge, dimpling or puckering of the skin of the breast, or changes in size or shape of the breast. Changes in the colour of the breast may also appear differently on various skin tones.
“Most breast changes, including lumps, won’t be cancer but it’s important to contact a GP as soon as possible if you notice any changes that are new or unusual for you. The sooner breast cancer is found, the more successful treatment is likely to be.”
For information or support, call Breast Cancer Now’s free, confidential Helpline on 0808 800 6000.
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