In 2010, Kath Sellers experienced the devastating loss of her mum to breast cancer, a moment that profoundly changed the course of her life.
Determined to create something positive from her passing, she began working in breast cancer research at The Nightingale Centre, home of Prevent Breast Cancer.
Today, as a long-standing and passionate supporter of the charity, Kath reflects on how her personal journey with breast cancer has not only shaped her path but fuelled her unwavering commitment to making a difference.
It’s hard to know where to start.
In September 2010, we learned that Mum’s cancer had spread further. She spent several weeks at Wythenshawe Hospital before being transferred to The Christie, and eventually to St Ann’s Hospice, where she received end of life palliative care.
Taking my two daughters who were 4 and 6 to the hospice to say goodbye is one of the hardest things I’ve done. My mum wanted more than anything to be a nanna, particularly as she lost her own mum when she was only a teenager. All we could do was sit by and watch as she became thinner, but my mum was a fighter.
She was never one to give up easily, but finally after 10 days, breast cancer finally took her from us. I spent as much time as I could at the hospice but went home one day to watch Mamma Mia with my young girls as I hadn’t spent much time with them. I got a call from my dad. I answered and all I could hear was my dad, saying I loved her so much through his tears. That’s when I knew my mum had died and my heart broke.
After losing her mum, Kath wanted something positive to come out of her passing and to make a difference in people’s lives:
I learnt a lot through watching my mum’s strength and defiance, and I carry those lessons with me. I learnt to live life in the now as you may not get tomorrow.
A role came up working as a trial coordinator with Professor Michelle Harvie, the award-winning research dietitian based at the Prevent Breast Cancer Research Unit. I was with Michelle from 2011 to 2021. I really enjoyed working with Michelle and the dietitians and have been interested in diet and lifestyle ever since. I also learnt a lot about the risk factors for breast cancer.
Due to her own breast cancer risk, Kath has been a patient in the Nightingale Family History Clinic along with her sister for over a decade:
There’s a lot about risk factors that are beyond my control, including when I started my periods, when I had my children and when I will go through the menopause. What I can influence is my lifestyle. I eat healthily, get plenty of exercise and only very occasionally drink alcohol. This gives me some control over my risk and is something positive that I can do to keep my risk as low as possible.
Shortly after starting to work for Michelle, I was encouraged to start cycling and I’ve been cycling to work ever since. I even took part in a 100-mile fundraising cycle ride for Prevent Breast Cancer. I’ve also been a participant on one of Sacha Howell’s studies that looks at the effect of taking preventative Tamoxifen in high-risk women.
Kath’s passion about how lifestyle choices can play a powerful role in preventing breast cancer shines through in everything she does:
I am only four years away from the age my mum was when she was first diagnosed and that scares me a lot. I want to watch my daughters grow up and have their own children, and then watch my grandchildren grow up. I want to grow old with my husband, having adventures, living life and exploring the world along the way. I have my yearly mammograms, and they give me some reassurance, but each time I get the all clear it feels like I have narrowly escaped cancer again.
That’s a big part of why I’m so passionate about lifestyle and prevention because I want to give myself the best possible chance of being around for many more years to come.
We asked Kath what a breast cancer free future means for her:
It means not worrying if myself, my sister, daughters, nieces will develop breast cancer. You never get over the experience of standing by and feeling helpless as you watch a loved one slowly die. A breast cancer free future means no one will have to experience what mum and all of us went through.
I can’t change the past, but I can influence the future not just for myself but for my daughters and others. By being involved with Prevent Breast Cancer and working towards a breast cancer free future, my girls’ future is something I can have a positive influence on.
It is far better to prevent something from happening than try and fix it after.
Thanks so much to Kath for sharing her story with us. Find out more about reducing your risk of breast cancer.
About Prevent Breast Cancer
Prevent Breast Cancer is the only UK charity entirely dedicated to the prediction and prevention of breast cancer – we’re committed to freeing the world from the disease altogether. Unlike many cancer charities, we’re focused on preventing, rather than curing. Promoting early diagnosis, screening and lifestyle changes, we believe we can stop the problem before it starts. And being situated at the only breast cancer prevention centre in the UK, we’re right at the front-line in the fight against the disease. Join us today and help us create a future free from breast cancer. If you have any questions or concerns, email us today.
