'There's more to life than a cancer support group'

Victoria Coles said watching her daughter go to school this year brought tears for reasons that were different to other parents

A woman with stage four cancer has said she is living for the moment after completing a 90km (56-mile) charity cycle ride and seeing her "miracle" daughter start school.

Victoria Coles was diagnosed with secondary cancer in 2022, shortly after her daughter was born.

The 36-year-old, from the Isle of Wight, took part in Sir Chris Hoy's Tour De 4 cycle event in Scotland in September, the same month that her daughter began primary school.

She said: "Just because you've got cancer doesn't mean you can't go around and enjoy your life."

Ms Coles cycled 90km at Sir Chris Hoy's Tour De 4 challenge

The gym manager was 25 when she was originally diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, before being given the all-clear.

Doctors, who removed one of her ovaries for fertility preservation, said there was no chance of conceiving without the ovary being reimplanted, Ms Coles recalled.

However, her daughter was born in 2021 during the pandemic.

In that year, doctors initially attributed symptoms she was experiencing to the Covid vaccine, she said.

But she was later told she had cancer in her liver, spine, hips, ribs and collarbone, and had an estimated 12 to 18 months to live.

Ms Coles said: "If my days are limited, why not enjoy it and push yourself?

"There's more to life than sitting around in a support group."

She signed up for Sir Chris Hoy's Tour De 4 challenge, which aims to change perceptions of stage four cancer after his own diagnosis last October.

She said: "I thought, 'I shouldn't be able to do this' but I've always enjoyed a challenge.

"I had to stop training for two months because of rib pain, which didn't help.

"On the day, I was still in two minds whether to do a small or a long ride."

Ms Coles chose the longest route, raising more than £1,600 for the charity Ladies Fighting Breast Cancer.

She said watching her daughter go to school this year brought tears for reasons that were different to other parents.

"I am stable, I feel well," she said. "I'm going to carry on day-to-day."