When Rachel Byrne began to experience extreme tiredness, she assumed it was due to her busy work and home life.
But on January 19th last year she unexpectedly found a lump on her breast and, conscious of the importance of early intervention, she contacted her doctor immediately.
Two weeks after seeing her GP, she had a mammogram and ultrasound and was then told she would also need to have a biopsy done on both the lump and her lymph nodes.
Still hoping the tumour might be benign, she was devastated to discover she had cancer – stage-three HER2-positive oestrogen-positive breast cancer – and not only would she need chemotherapy, but radiation, targeted therapy and a mastectomy too.
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“It was brutal,” said the Dublin woman, who is married to Neil and has two children.
“I went from being an active and busy person to having no energy. It really floored me.
“Losing my hair was also very hard as I didn’t recognise myself in the mirror and initially wore a turban, but once the summer came I had to take it off and that is when it hit home.
“I really struggled with having my breast removed. That was the hardest part – I felt like I had lost my femininity.
“But the oncologist, surgeons, doctors and nurses were amazing, so kind, caring and supportive, and thankfully I didn’t need further chemo after the surgery.”
The sales developer, still on sick leave and “trying to recover, both mentally and physically” from her ordeal, is waiting to see a plastic surgeon about having a breast reconstruction.
Although she has suffered with anxiety and depression, she said was “working hard” to build up her confidence.
Despite everything, she remains positive and said she was “proud to be an ambassador” for Breast Cancer Ireland’s Very Pink Run, which takes place in various locations across the country at the start of September.
She will be taking part and is urging others to either sign up to participate or donate what they can to help raise vital funds for breast cancer research.
“I’m so grateful to have come through it all and still be here, and hope to live the happiest life with my family and friends,” she said.
“I’m very proud to be an ambassador for this year’s Very Pink Run and would encourage everyone to get involved in any way they can.
“It might be called a run, but you can also walk – as I will be alongside some of my amazing family and friends who helped me through the past 17 months.
“It’s a really fun day out and also helps to raise vital funds for Breast Cancer Ireland who do incredible work in research, raising awareness, improving survival rates and saving lives.
“They need our help, so please do it for your daughter, mother, sister, friend or yourself.
“Also, I would urge everyone to check themselves once a month. I wasn’t checking and was lucky to have found the lump just by chance, so I always wonder if I would have found it sooner if I had been checking. Early detection saves lives.”
There are 3,700 diagnoses of breast cancer a year in Ireland and both men and women are at risk: one in seven women will develop the disease in the course of their lifetime along with one in 738 men.
It affects people of all ages and early signs include puckering or dimpling of skin, a lump in the breast or armpit, unusual swelling, a rash, increase in size of one breast or a change or discharge around the nipple.
Despite the high incidence of breast cancer in Ireland, a social-impact report from Breast Cancer Ireland has shown that, since the charity was established in 2012, public awareness of the disease, diagnosis and treatment have improved dramatically.
In addition to this, survival rates have increased by about 20 per cent, with mortality rates reducing 2 per cent year on year.
To date, €34.5 million has been raised to date by Breast Cancer Ireland with more than €15 million invested in funding life-saving research across 23 projects worldwide.
Participation or support of the Very Pink Run, which is billed as a “fun, family, festival style day out with music food and entertainment”, will help to raise funds towards new treatments and therapies for breast cancer.
Aisling Hurley, CEO of Breast Cancer Ireland, said early detection was enabling earlier diagnosis and treatment – for example, Ireland’s first robotic mastectomy took place last year as a result of funding support from the charity. Despite soaring success rates, there is still more which can be done.
“Survival rates in 2011 were 73 per cent and this had grown to 88 per cent by 2023,” she said. “Our goal is to continue increasing this figure until we reach zero deaths from breast cancer.”
Registration for the run, in Leopardstown Racecourse, Dublin, on September 6th; MTU Cork on September 7th; and Kilkenny Castle Park on September 14th; is now open.
