I was diagnosed with stage four breast cancer in 2022, at 39. The disease spread to my bones a decade after my initial breast cancer diagnosis, making it incurable, but treatable.

I am now four years into a diagnosis where many people don't survive past five years, but I'm living a brilliant life. A stage 4 cancer diagnosis isn't necessarily a death sentence, and there are hundreds of thousands of us in the UK alone, living and thriving with stage 4 cancer.

Tour de 4 is a new cycle event set up by Sir Chris Hoy, the Olympic cyclist who was diagnosed with stage 4 prostate cancer in 2024. The event not only raises money for incredible cancer charities, but also raises awareness about this seldom-understood stage of disease.

I competed in the first edition of the event, but this year I'm going harder! On September 6th, my husband Mark and I will be cycling 92 kilometres (56 miles!) in Glasgow to raise money for Breast Cancer Now (me) and Prostate Cancer UK (Mark). Mark's late father overcame prostate cancer, and Mark now works for Prostate Cancer UK.

We want to raise as much as money as possible for these two charities that are so close to our hearts, but we also want to raise awareness about stage 4 cancer, and how we're living and thriving despite my illness and the many challenges it represents.

Thanks so much in advance! Laura