Claire's Boob Battle

42 year old mother of 3 from AMPTHILL, Bedfordshire fighting a breast cancer diagnosis needs to raise £125k by September 2022 for treatment not available in the UK.

A Bit About Me

My name is Claire Young. My partner James and I have three children, Louis who is 7, Isla who is 4 and my step daughter, Molly who is 17.  

My Story So Far

On 8th December 2021 I was given the devastating news that I had Stage 3 breast cancer.

Before I’d had the chance to come to terms with the news I then found out in January 2022 that I have an inherited cancer gene mutation (ATM) which increases my chances of having breast cancer in particular. 

On 1st February 2022 I had a double mastectomy with reconstruction and my lymph nodes on the left side were also removed.  I then started 6 months of chemotherapy on 8th March, which I am now part way through. 

 The Next Stage of Treatment 

In order to kill any cancer cells left in my chest area and to reduce the risk of reoccurrence the next stage of treatment would normally be radiotherapy but the ATM gene mutation I have increases my sensitivity to radiation which comes with the risk of causing a second cancer.   The other complication with radiotherapy is that I was born with a chest condition called Pectus Excavatum.  This means my sternum is significantly depressed which causes additional complications as radiotherapy can cause damage to my heart& lungs due to the positioning of my breast bone. 

 For the reasons above conventional radiotherapy is not advised and I instead need to have a treatment called Proton Beam Therapy.  This is a form of radiotherapy but it is much more targeted and precise.  The challenge is that it is not offered under the NHS in England or covered by private healthcare for breast cancer and there are no private centres in the UK that can offer me this treatment as a self-funded patient.  The only option I have is to access treatment in Europe. The cost of this treatment is still being outlined but I am told it will be in excess of £50,000 and treatment needs to start at the end of August 2022. 

 My family and friends are coming together to arrange fundraising events in the coming months.  If you would like to support me by either sponsoring or attending these events then please follow my social media accounts.  

 I will be so grateful to anyone that can help towards raising this huge amount of money to get me the treatment I need to beat cancer.  Donations of every amount are welcome and every contribution will help me to reach my goal. 

 It would also mean a lot if you could please share my fundraiser link on social media.  The more exposure I get, the faster I will be able to raise the money needed. 

Thank you so much for reading my story.

 Claire xx

 
Facebook:​clairesboobbattle

Instagram:​@clairesboobbattle

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Twitter: @boobbattle