Doncaster woman: '˜Falling down saved my life'

After taking a tumble she was taken for a mammogram after suffering pain in her left breast - and while the test showed bruising it also picked up cancer in her right breast.

She did not know it at the time but the fall was her saving grace.

The 59-year-old Bawtry woman, who also lost her mum and two sisters to cancer, is now urging other women to go for a mammogram as it could save their life.

She said: “The mammogram showed a tumour in the breast which I had not been able to feel. I had a lumpectomy – which is removal of the tumour - followed by 15 fractions or daily treatments of radiotherapy and had lymph nodes removed too.

“Basically, the mammogram saved my life.

“If I’d not fallen, I wouldn’t have had the mammogram, so falling down and hurting myself was life saving for me.”

She added: “My plea to other women is when you receive your mammogram appointment, take the opportunity to go for the test.

“Some breast cancers are not detectable without a mammogram and you may not feel a lump even if you self-examine.

“Some women don’t realise how important mammograms are.”

She made her appeal as the country gears up for Wear It Pink day on October 21 to raise awareness and money for the fight against cancer.

Lynne now dedicates her working life to going out into the community with staff from the Living Well Information Service in Balby to encourage women to be breast aware.

She said: “I’ve had women say ‘my husband would find a lump, so I don’t need a mammogram.’”

“I explain that no-one could see or feel mine – only the mammogram as it was so deep.

“So please, attend your appointment when you are invited.”

Joanne O’Marr, who works at the Living Well Information Service, said: “Our Living Well Information and Support Service exists to empower and support the people of Doncaster, by providing quality information and support about cancer.

“Lynne is fantastic to work with. She can really get the message home to women that they need to be breast aware. Being breast aware and having mammograms, as Lynne proves, can save your life.”

The Living Well Information and Support Service is run by Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust. For more information about services visit https://www.rdash.nhs.uk/services/our-services/adult-doncaster-community-integrated-services/living-well-service/