Bristol singer 'terrified' to lose voice after cancer diagnosis

Ms Pardoe underwent surgery to remove her thyroid gland in June 2023

A singer with thyroid cancer said the prospect of losing her voice was "more terrifying" than the diagnosis itself.

Florence Pardoe, 35, from Eastville, in Bristol, was diagnosed with a papillary carcinoma in January 2023.

She made the decision to delay removal surgery until after recording her album, afraid that complications might halt her singing career forever.

"The thing that actually scared me the most was how having this surgery might affect my voice," she said.

Thyroid cancer is a rare type of cancer that affects the thyroid - a small gland at the base of the neck that produces hormones.

"The whole time I had cancer I never considered myself to be someone with cancer, I just had a few cancerous cells on my thyroid," she told BBC Radio Bristol's John Darvall.

But doctors revealed to Ms Pardoe that they would need take out her thyroid out completely.

Ms Pardoe is the lead singer in the band 'Florence and the Bare Souls', formed in 2016

"Whilst the word in itself was scary... there was a chance that it could impact my voice permanently, that I might not get the range or the power back, so that was terrifying," she said.

"I had a run of three gigs not long before my surgery and it was really emotional, because a big part of me was thinking 'is this going to be the last time I can sing like this?'"

Ms Pardoe said she first began noticing issues with her thyroid around 12 years ago but they went undiagnosed by NHS doctors, who told her she was within the 'normal range'.

She was eventually diagnosed by a specialist with hypothyroidism, a condition in which the thyroid gland does not produce enough hormones.

Ms Pardoe said she would encourage others living with thyroid symptoms "to be their own advocates with their doctors."

'Good to be back'

Doctors gave her medication to regulate the imbalance, but a subsequent check up revealed the cancerous lump.

In June last year, Ms Pardoe underwent a successful surgery, with doctors assuring her there was no more cancer in her body.

She has since been receiving speech and language therapy at St Michael's Hospital to "retrain" her singing voice.

"A lot of the work we've been doing is just trying to help me get out of my own head, to relax back into what my body already knows how to do," Ms Pardoe said.

"It's not as easy as it once was, but it's so good to be back. Singing is the essence of who I am."