Bride spotted terrifying sign of deadly disease on day three of her honeymoon
An eagle-eyed bride has revealed her horror after spotting the first sign of breast cancer just three days into her honeymoon.
Emma Barker was enjoying wedded bliss on the trip to Thailand and was strapping on her bikini when she discovered a lump. While the common symptom is worrying enough for most women, for 29-year-old Emma, it was "soul-crushing".
The newlywed learned in 2016 that she carries a mutated BRCA1 gene, which has been linked to higher rates of breast and ovarian cancer. Heartbroken, Emma tried to continue enjoying the trip, keeping the discovery a secret from husband Tom until they arrived home in Leigh, Greater Manchester.
“I was told in 2016 that I had the BRCA1 gene and I knew I had an increased risk of getting ovarian and breast cancer, but I was told that wouldn’t happen until I was 40-years-old,” said Emma. “The message I took away from the doctors was ‘go, live your life, have your babies and come back to us in 15 years’.”
But Emma and Tom's dream honeymoon in December 2018 turned into a nightmare when the reality of Emma's genetics came crashing down. She described the lump as feeling “like a marble”. “I didn’t feel scared but it was just a soul-crushing moment.
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Emma now has a 70% higher chance of the cancer returning (Breast Cancer Now)
Emma turned 30 while undergoing her treatment (Breast Cancer Now)“I had felt like everything had been going brilliantly, everything was really exciting, almost like everything had been going too well in life. But I knew exactly what was going to happen from then on.”
Arriving home shortly before Christmas, Emma said she "burst into tears" to find the lump was still there, telling husband Tom her fears. The couple immediately went to the GP, but had to wait out the festive period to see someone. In January 2019, Emma was diagnosed with oestrogen receptor positive breast cancer. But further bad news unfolded when a second lump was found while waiting for her treatment, as Emma learned she had triple negative breast cancer.
The cancer is usually a more aggressive form which affects 8,000 women a year, and is more likely to return within five years of treatment. She began a gruelling treatment schedule – a double mastectomy, lymph node removal, radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
On top of that, Emma and Tom began IVF in the eventuality chemo drugs would leave her infertile. “I had to have a conversation with Tom about adoption and what would happen if we had a child and I wasn’t here," Emma told the Manchester Evening News. "These are things you shouldn’t have to think about at that age, but he was so supportive.”
Emma and Tom were able to have a family naturally - and were joined by their daughter Autumn (Breast Cancer Now)“I planned my own funeral, it was all done for Tom in case the worst happened. I didn’t tell him at the time, only once I was better – instead I told a friend where to find the plans if it was going to be that outcome.” Emma completed her treatment in August 2019 and was placed on hormone therapy to reduce the chance of the cancer coming back. Mercifully, the cancer has not yet returned, but she has a 70% chance of the disease returning in the coming years.
Since the chemo, the couple have welcomed ‘miracle baby’ girl Autumn, who in the end was conceived naturally. “I don’t say I’m counting the days now, I say I’m making them count,” says Emma, now 33. “I enjoy every day because you realise how fragile life is after something like this, and I’m grateful I know that so early on.
“And if sharing my story makes someone take a lumpy boob – or a boob that’s not even lumpy – to the doctor and has their life saved, then it’s worth me going through everything that I have.”
Around 1 in every 400 Brits have a faulty BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes - which make tissue cells more likely to become cancerous - according to Cancer Research. “My daughter might have the gene, so I’m trying to do everything I can now to campaign for new treatments for her and for her own children,” said Emma.
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