Hi, my name is Kerry and the picture on this page is of my kind, beautiful, happy, hard-working mum who has been diagnosed with aggressive (grade 3) breast cancer- my mum is my best friend and my rock- an inspirational woman who has been the strength of the family. We lost my beautiful aunty (her sister) to brain cancer, and my amazing Grandad (her dad) to bowel cancer and feel like this evil disease has broken the hearts of my family in pieces already. My mum has been a hard worker her entire life; I can remember her and my dad working two jobs each when I was little and into teenage years to ensure we had a good life, and she was still working as a childminder looking after three (sometimes four) gorgeous children up until her diagnosis in November - she loved her job with the children and even at the age of 61 worked tirelessly, taking the kids on lovely trips out, doing activities with them and contributing to their educational needs- over the years she has shown so many such love that we have contact with all of them, even into their adulthood - they love her like another mum.

My mum’s diagnosis has been the worst time in my family’s life and has stripped my mum of the job she loves, her happiness and furthermore, her income which was needed to pay the mortgage and bills, especially with needing to look after my 84 year old Nan who lives with her. Although she has enquired, my mum is not entitled to any financial help because my Dad works full time and they have had to lose a whole income overnight and cope with the cost of living crisis on top of this. A whole income to lose overnight is just so hard. I am trying my hardest to help sell anything I can to help but with constant travel to hospital appointments and parking charges, we are reaching out to the kind people of the world for help, who can empathise with a hard-working family, who have always paid their taxes and NI and need some help to get through the next year whilst mum undertakes aggressive chemotherapy and a mastectomy. In the diagnostic phase, they have also found a lesion on her brain which may require being removed which will mean another surgery

I can categorically say, this has been the worst time of my life seeing my happy-go-lucky, kind and loving mum become a shell of her former self, riddled with anxiety and too worried to buy nutritious food or have the heating on because of the cost of living. It’s an anxiety you just really don’t need when you’re faced with cancer and my heart goes out to anybody in the same situation. Life really is cruel, but I know there are some amazingly kind and empathetic souls out there who may want to help us.

Prayers for my beautiful mum in such a hard time would be much appreciated.

From an anxious and loving daughter, thank you so much.

Kerry

x x x x