'Small change to my body turned out to be cancer'

Kirsty Brunt gave birth to baby Phoenix at 36 weeks

A mother-of-three is urging other women not to ignore "any small changes" in their bodies after dismissing a lump in her breast as a hormonal change due to pregnancy.

Kirsty Brunt had only just stopped breastfeeding her second child when she discovered the lump.

The 41-year-old from Great Harwood in Lancashire said: "I just presumed it was a blocked duct or due to hormonal changes because I was pregnant, so it took me about eight weeks before I went and got it checked out.

"I was told quite quickly that it was cancer and it was such a shock because I genuinely didn't think it was anything to worry about."

Ms Brunt, a mental health practitioner at Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust, was six months pregnant when she was diagnosed.

'Not curable but treatable'

"After the initial diagnosis, we were then told that my cancer was oestrogen positive which meant my pregnancy hormones were feeding it, so I had to start treatment straight away," she said.

She started chemotherapy, and gave birth to baby Phoenix at 36 weeks.

"While I was pregnant I couldn't have any scans so we weren't sure what stage the cancer was but there was a noticeable reduction in the size of the lump, so I felt like the chemotherapy was working," she said.

However, after a lumpectomy and surgery to remove 25 lymph nodes Ms Brunt was told her cancer had spread and she was now stage four.

"I was told that I had metastatic breast cancer which had spread to my sternum and spine 18 months ago," she said.

"I tell people that my cancer is not curable but it's treatable which means I can live a relatively normal life while I'm responding to treatment.

"I don't know if going to get that lump checked out eight weeks earlier would have resulted in my story being any different but it's something I'll always wonder."

Ms Brunt said she lives "a very full life" and "finds joy every day" but has urged women "to get any small change they notice checked out, even if they are breastfeeding or pregnant, it's better to be 100% sure".

Michelle Martin, GP clinical lead for cancer at NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board, said: "Checking your breasts regularly is essential.

"Breast cancer can affect you at any age, so if you notice anything unusual, then please don't wait to contact your GP, and please don't worry about wasting anyone's time – it's always best to be sure."

Symptoms of breast cancer may include:

• A lump, or swelling in your breast, chest or armpit

• A change in the skin of your breast, such as dimpling (may look like orange peel) or redness (may be harder to see on black or brown skin)

• A change in size or shape of one or both breasts

• Nipple discharge (if you are not pregnant or breastfeeding), which may have blood in it

• A change in the shape or look of your nipple, such as it turning inwards (inverted nipple) or a rash on it (may look like eczema)

• Pain in your breast or armpit which does not go away – breast pain that comes and goes is usually not a symptom of breast cancer

Source NHS