Sarah Ferguson will appear on Loose Women to launch a breast cancer awareness campaign
Sarah Ferguson will appear on ITV’s Loose Women on Thursday.
The Duchess of York, 63, has joined forces with the Loose Women panel to launch the first ‘Don’t Skip Your Screening’ campaign, highlighting the importance of attending mammography appointments. The Duchess will join Christine Lampard, Coleen Nolan and Brenda Edwards in the pre-recorded one-off special.
It’s the first time Sarah has discussed her experiences with breast cancer on television and the mother-of-two will talk about dealing with the disease and undergoing a life-changing mastectomy earlier this year.
Sarah has a personal connection with the ‘Don’t Skip Your Screening’ campaign, having almost missed her screening appointment to avoid traveling through London on a hot day.
“I almost missed the screening appointment that saved my life,” she said.
Sarah Ferguson (pictured) makes her daytime television debut with an appearance on Loose Women on Thursday
But thanks to the persuasion of her sister, Jane, Sarah fortunately came to the appointment and received a diagnosis in a timely manner.
She underwent a successful mastectomy, which she says helped her overcome “years” of self-loathing after being compared to Princess Diana at King Edward VII’s Hospital in London earlier this year.
She later recovered at home at Royal Lodge, Windsor, where she lives with her ex-husband, Prince Andrew, despite splitting almost three decades ago.
Speaking ahead of the show, the mum-of-two said: ‘I almost missed the screening appointment that saved my life.
‘I couldn’t face a trip to London on a hot day this summer, and it was only my sister Jane’s insistence that I go that convinced me.
‘My cancer was completely symptom-free: I never found a lump and didn’t feel sick.
‘My experience underlines the crucial importance of a screening when you are called up.
‘It is a major concern that according to the latest figures, 1.2 million mammography appointments have been missed, many of which during the pandemic.
The Duchess will join Christine Lampard, Coleen Nolan (pictured center left) and Brenda Edwards (far right) in this one-off special
Sarah Ferguson, 63, said she had put off routine checks until her sister Jane Ferguson, who lives in Australia, insisted she be checked (the pair are pictured together)
‘I’m proud to support Loose Women’s campaign, backed by NHS England, to encourage women to catch up on missed appointments and turn up when called. Don’t skip your screening – it could save your life if it did mine.’
In an initiative supported by the NHS, Sarah, along with the Loose Women panel, will encourage women to book the potentially life-saving appointment when invited.
British charity Breast Cancer Now praised the campaign for its specific focus on the importance of women undergoing routine screenings.
The initiative comes at a critical time as almost a million fewer women have undergone routine screening since Covid, the charity revealed.
Breast cancer It is now estimated that around 6,000 women in England are living with undiagnosed breast cancer, with disruption to routine screening a major factor.
The Duchess of York (center) with her two daughters, Princess Beatrice (left) and Princess Eugenie (right)
Discussing Loose Women’s ‘Don’t Skip Your Screening’ campaign, the leading research and support charity Breast Cancer Now said: ‘We are hugely grateful to Loose Women for putting a spotlight on breast screening as part of their ‘ Don’t Skip Your Screening campaign. Skip Your Screening” campaign and highlights the important issue of addressing the shortage of women undergoing breast screening due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
‘Breast screening is an essential tool in detecting breast cancer at the earliest possible stage, when treatment is more likely to be successful.
‘We encourage all women to attend an invited breast examination appointment and to check their breasts regularly, reporting any unusual changes to their GP as soon as possible.’
‘Checking your breasts only takes a few minutes. It could be when you get dressed, while showering, or when you apply moisturizer. There is no special technique, it’s as simple as TLC: Touch, Look, Check.’
In the first episode of her podcast, Fergie insisted she is ‘very shy’ and said she trusts ‘too much’ and ‘too many people’ (pictured with her co-host Sarah Jane Thomson)
It comes after Sarah opened up about her mastectomy recovery and revealed she has a reconstructed breast named ‘Derek’.
Speaking to co-host Sarah Thomson in August, the Duchess explained how she is ‘just coming to terms with my new best friend Derek’.
She said: ‘On my left his name is Derek… and he’s very important because he saved my life.’
During their conversation, the Duchess’ friend asked what attracted her to the name Derek.
In response, Sarah said, “I don’t know, it just made me laugh that now I have a friend who is always with me and protects him with his armor.”
Additionally, the Duchess joked about calling her other breast “Eric.”
She added, “Poor Eric on the right is feeling kind of sad because he’s not as perky as Derek on the left, but I’ll balance Eric out, don’t worry.”
During the conversation, Sarah also said she was ‘proud’ of the team of doctors and surgeons who cared for her.
“You’re rebuilt,” her co-host said in response.
The Duchess said: ‘I’ve got new wheels and a new engine and I’m going to take the car for a drive soon!’
Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world, affecting more than two MILLION women every year
Breast cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer in the world. There are more than 55,000 new cases in Britain every year, and the disease claims the lives of 11,500 women. In the US it affects 266,000 people and kills 40,000 every year. But what causes it and how can it be treated?
What is breast cancer?
It comes from a cancer cell that develops in the lining of a duct or lobe in one of the breasts.
When the breast cancer has spread to surrounding tissue, it is called ‘invasive’. Some people are diagnosed with ‘carcinoma in situ’, where no cancer cells have grown outside the duct or lobule.
Most cases develop in people over the age of 50, but sometimes younger women are also affected. Breast cancer can develop in men, although this is rare.
Staging indicates how big the cancer is and whether it has spread. Stage 1 is the earliest stage and stage 4 means the cancer has spread to another part of the body.
The cancer cells are classified from low, which means slow growth, to high, which means fast growth. High-grade cancers are more likely to come back after they are first treated.
What causes breast cancer?
A cancerous tumor starts from one abnormal cell. The exact reason why a cell becomes cancerous is unclear. It is thought that something damages or changes certain genes in the cell. This causes the cell to become abnormal and multiply ‘out of control’.
Although breast cancer can develop for no apparent reason, there are some risk factors that can increase its likelihood, such as genetics.
What are the symptoms of breast cancer?
The usual first symptom is a painless lump in the breast, although most are not cancerous and are fluid-filled cysts, which are benign.
The first place breast cancer usually spreads to is the lymph nodes in the armpit. When this happens, a swelling or lump develops in the armpit.
How is breast cancer diagnosed?
- Initial assessment: A doctor examines the breasts and armpits. They may do tests such as a mammogram, a special X-ray of the breast tissue that can indicate the possibility of tumors.
- Biopsy: A biopsy involves removing a small piece of tissue from a part of the body. The sample is then examined under a microscope to look for abnormal cells. The sample can confirm or rule out cancer.
If you are confirmed to have breast cancer, further tests may be needed to assess whether the cancer has spread. For example, blood tests, an ultrasound of the liver or an X-ray of the chest.
How is breast cancer treated?
Treatment options that may be considered include surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone treatment. A combination of two or more of these treatments is often used.
- Surgery: Breast-conserving surgery or removal of the affected breast, depending on the size of the tumor.
- Radiotherapy: A treatment that uses high-energy beams of radiation aimed at cancerous tissue. This kills cancer cells or prevents them from multiplying. It is mainly used as an adjunct to surgery.
- Chemotherapy: A cancer treatment that uses anti-cancer drugs that kill cancer cells or prevent them from multiplying.
- Hormone treatments: Some types of breast cancer are affected by the ‘female’ hormone estrogen, which can stimulate cancer cells to divide and multiply. Treatments that lower the levels of these hormones or prevent them from working are often used in people with breast cancer.
How successful is the treatment?
The outlook is best in those who are diagnosed when the cancer is still small and has not spread. Surgical removal of a tumor at an early stage can then give a good chance of cure.
Thanks to routine mammography offered to women between the ages of 50 and 70, more cases of early-stage breast cancer are being diagnosed and treated.
For more information, visit breastcancernow.org or call the free helpline on 0808 800 6000