My sister and absolute best friend Mel, has just had her world turned upside down!! She has recently been diagnosed with breast cancer and now faces months of Chemotherapy before Surgery, followed by more Chemotherapy.

She is a brilliant mum to her four children, and her biggest wish is to stay strong for them. But as she begins this long journey, she'll be unable to continue working, and her partner will need to cut back on his hours to help care for her and the kids. This means their finances will become extremely tight, when they should be focusing on her treatment and recovery.

With Christmas fast approaching, the added pressure of trying to make it special for the children, on top of everything else, feels overwhelming, especially given her financial circumstances. We want to make sure the kids can still enjoy the festive season, and that Mel can focus on creating happy memories with them despite everything she’s going through, and without trying to juggle what bills she can and cannot pay to make that happen.

We are raising funds to help ease the pressure on their family during this incredibly difficult time. Donations will go towards:

Covering everyday household bills and expenses while income is reduced.

Supporting the children with essentials and keeping life as normal as possible for them.

Travel costs for hospital appointments and treatment.

Helping the family make Christmas special and creating positive memories during a very hard year.

Any extra needs that arise during her recovery.

Mel has always been the kind of person who gives her time and energy to help others, she’s the most caring person! Now it’s our turn to be there for her.

Any donation, no matter how small, will make a difference. If you aren’t able to give, simply sharing this page would mean so much to us.

Update:

Mel received her results this week to see whether the cancer had spread. She’s been told it’s at stage 3!

She has two types of breast cancer: Invasive Ductal Carcinoma and another type they’re still confirming. The second one could be one of two forms, one aggressive and less responsive to chemotherapy, and another that responds better. Unfortunately, they’re fairly sure it’s the more aggressive type, so the plan is now to go ahead with the surgery first, before chemotherapy and radiotherapy etc!

The cancer has spread to her lymph nodes, so the operation needs to be within 2 weeks or so (mid October) before it has chance to spread further!!

She has a really long road ahead of her, and I'd love to get closer to our goal to help support her and her children whilst she's unable to work!

UPDATE - 1st November 2025: Mel has recently had her double Mastectomy and reconstructive surgery, but unfortunately her recovery hasn’t been easy. Her wound became badly infected and has reopened, so she’s due to have it re-stitched on Monday.

She was prescribed strong antibiotics, but they didn’t work as hoped, so she’s now on a much stronger dose, which is making her feel quite unwell.

On Monday, she should also find out more about all the lymph nodes that were removed and whether anymore have been affected by the cancer, and what chemotherapy regime she’ll need going forward.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for supporting Mel and her family as they face this tough journey ❤️