Overcoming cancer with Lisa Kynaston

With more women (and men) seeking less medical support during the pandemic, it’s never been more important for us to help build awareness of health issues and concerns by sharing stories and experiences. 

We caught up with Lisa Kynaston, People Operations, Shore and Service Management Director, to share her experience of breast cancer.

Coming from a family with no history of cancer combined with being relatively young (42), fit and healthy, my diagnosis of breast cancer in April 2020 came as a huge shock. 

There’s obviously no good time to be diagnosed with cancer but I did wonder whether it would have been possible to have chosen a worse time!  The very start of our first lockdown and a time when no-one wanted to be anywhere near a hospital.  Despite the pandemic I’ve been so fortunate and feel hugely grateful that my treatment has not been delayed at all; we’ve all heard of lots of people who haven’t had such a positive experience.

The hardest part of my journey was, without doubt, the period of time between diagnosis and getting confirmation of the extent of the cancer; lots of scans, tests and waiting followed by more of the same.  So many questions and assumptions filled my head: ‘It’s spread to all parts of my body’, ‘That backache I’ve been struggling with is actually something more sinister’, ‘I’ve only got a few months to live’, ‘What did my last Nuffield Health assessment say?’, ‘My 18 month old twins aren’t even going to remember me’, ‘How can I help my 9 year old son deal with this?’, ‘What happened to breast feeding reducing the chances of breast cancer?’ and ‘Why me?’

They were pretty dark times. However, when I got the news that the cancer had only advanced locally to the lymph nodes (which, post-surgery, I found out was only one lymph node), I felt a huge relief and it wasn’t long before my treatment plan was agreed and I was starting my road to recovery.

12 months on and I’m coming to the end of my treatment; chemotherapy, mastectomy, radiotherapy and targeted therapy. The treatment has been totally successful and my prognosis is looking really good. 

The worry of recurrence is never far from my mind so I now focus on keeping as happy and healthy as possible. This whole experience has encouraged me to be a custodian for wellbeing far more than ever before. I’ve made changes to my diet, I save alcohol for special occasions, I’m completing a couch to 10km challenge and, as cliché as this sounds, I try and take the time to enjoy and be grateful for small things that I previously took for granted.

Along with prioritising my wellbeing, I’ve found it really helpful to have someone to turn to who’s been through the same journey as me, someone who will answer my questions and someone who totally understands what I am going through. I’ve had this support and I now get a lot of pleasure giving the same support to others. I know they too will pay-it-forward when the time is right.

I don’t know about you but I often find that Facebook can be your friend or your worst enemy when you’re feeling a little fragile. I love Facebook to escape and switch off, to enjoy other people’s photos and feel connected to people, but I didn’t enjoy the constant cancer reminder that seemed to creep into my news feed. Managing my settings and removing myself from any cancer related groups I’d previously joined helped me get the break I needed.

If you (both men and women, yes, men can get breast cancer too) take anything from reading this article, I’d love it to be to check your armpits as well as your breasts.  We’ve all seen the reminders to check your breasts but breast cancer manifested itself as a lump under my armpit; there was no palpable lump in my breast when I was diagnosed. 

And for any breastfeeding mums who are reading, although the risks may be reduced (I was breastfeeding when I was diagnosed) it can also be harder to tell as your breasts can feel quite different. Please don’t ignore anything that seems unfamiliar. 

I’ve learnt a lot throughout this journey – I’m braver than I thought; I have the most wonderful family, friends and work colleagues, and the NHS are beyond amazing…but still, it’s a year I don’t ever plan to repeat.

If you notice anything different such as a lump in your armpit, in your breast or are experiencing any other symptoms of Cancer speak to your GP (Aviva digital GP is available for shore colleagues) or your Medical team on board as soon as you can.

For more information on what to look out for click here.