Help Judy Owen

Hi, my name is Billy, and I am creating this page for my mum Judy, who was recently diagnosed with Breast Cancer for the second time in five years. She has gone through a really tough time since the initial diagnosis. She had a lumpectomy during the original operation, followed by Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy treatments and Herceptin injections once every three weeks. She now also has to have Tamoxifen for five years.

Since treatment ended, she has suffered a lot with different ailments brought on from it all. This has ranged from pain in her feet, achy bones, breathing problems, and neuropathy. She also lost her toenails after an infection, and although they have grown back, they never sit right and are in constant pain due to nerve damage.

She is very positive and laughs when most would cry, but that’s what gets her through it all. She had always done her best to keep strong even when it was clear she was struggling massively, but she knew she had to try her best to keep herself going. You would not see her with a smile on her face, even at her darkest moments. She was doing everything she could to bring normality back after everything that happened. That was until this past month when she went for her routine Mammogram, which flagged up some abnormalities. Sadly after some painful core biopsies, it confirmed she has a new form of breast cancer. Due to the previous operation and treatment, it means this time around; she has to have a mastectomy, with reconstruction as an option after, which would involve skin being used from her stomach, so it will be a very life-changing operation for her physically and mentally. She is the strongest person I know but this just completed turned her world upside-down. But without this operation, then she is hugely at risk, as her cancer is the highest grade they give and, if left untreated, would become invasive and life-threatening. There is also no guarantee that the mastectomy will be the end of it, as so it is most likely she will require Chemotherapy again to make sure she is fully clear.

She is still in debt from the first time around, as she was a self-employed cleaner, so it meant that she couldn’t work during all of her treatment, so she didn’t get paid, sadly. She couldn’t apply for sick pay, which caused her to get into debt, which she has struggled to get out of due to the knock-on effects of the treatment preventing her from fully getting back to work. So to have this diagnosis without any permanent employment has created a massive worry for her.

So I am creating this page to try and see if we can help ease any extra worries like her aftercare, the extra outgoings she will have going forward, and maybe even give her something to look forward to after she is through it all. We have contacted Macmillan for help, but because she previously had a grant during her first cancer diagnosis, she is sadly not allowed another as it hasn't been six years.

Any support during this challenging time would give her one less worry. No matter how small, it would mean absolutely everything to her. Thank you.