I Wear My Colours With Pride

I ignored the warning signs

Red like the blood which screamed danger

But I didn’t want to know

And told myself it couldn’t be

Like a moth circling a flame,

I circled the truth

Until it became impossible to deny it any longer

I dragged myself to the doctor

And after much prodding and poking

CT scans and MRIs

I learnt the terrifying truth: I had cancer

An alien mass had taken my womb hostage

And like an aggressive intruder,

It had already marched on

Spreading, casting its net further into my body

CANCER

I saw the word tattooed on my brain

Like giant black letters on a billboard

The word synonymous with death

My world flooded with darkness and thoughts of death

I planned my funeral and wrote heartfelt goodbyes to all my loved ones

I could not see the light at the end of the tunnel

But something else grew inside me

Something bigger and brighter than the cancer

It filled me with strength

Like a beautiful white dove it spread its wings

HOPE

Day by day it grew stronger

First whispering, then getting louder

Until it screamed: you will survive

And I believed it

I nourished and nurtured hope

Until the day I had dreamt of, the day I had longed for, arrived

I was cancer free

All signs of the disease were gone

Hope had conquered

It had beaten back the deadly enemy

But my body threw me another curve ball

My genetics were my enemy

A mutation in my genes increasing my risk of another cancer

It turned my life into a question mark

Would I get another cancer?

I cannot predict the future

But I can take ownership of my life

I OWN MY LIFE

Not my faulty genes

Nor the risk of another cancer

I will speak up, share my story and raise awareness

The colours of Lynch syndrome run in my genes

I carry those colours with pride

For this is me and

I OWN MY LIFE

***

I was diagnosed with womb cancer in March 2019. Following the diagnosis, I learnt I have an inherited genetic mutation called Lynch syndrome. We have since found out that my sister has inherited it, too and we got it from our mother.

We had no idea, and had never even heard of the syndrome, since we don’t have a history of cancer in the family.

Scientists estimate that one in 300 people are Lynch syndrome carriers. However, 95% don’t know it yet.

That is why I am determined to turn my experience and diagnosis into something positive and spread awareness in any way I can. With knowledge comes a screening programme and early diagnosis saves lives.

You can find out more about how I am raising awareness of Lynch syndrome on my blog Cycling For Cancer.