A REDDITCH woman who helped her mum get through breast cancer before being diagnosed with an aggressive form of the disease herself is set to join Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life.
Michelle Bowen said she and her mum were both lucky to be alive thanks to drugs that were not developed when her grandmother died of breast cancer aged just 63.
This prompted Michelle to sign up to take part in Race for Life at Arrow Valley Park in Redditch on Sunday, June 9 – exactly two years to the day after surgery to remove the lump she had discovered in her breast.
The challenge will be especially tough for 49-year-old mum Michelle who is still receiving targeted cancer treatment alongside therapy for arthritis and fibromyalgia.
Cancer Research UK helped develop four out of the five drugs Michelle has been given since her diagnosis in May 2022.
Michelle was diagnosed with an aggressive type of breast cancer after finding a lump but admits she almost did not visit the GP because two earlier lumps had turned out to be nothing.
“I thought this lump was another cyst, so I almost did not get it checked but I’m really glad I did,” she said.
“I supported my mum through breast cancer 14 years earlier when I was pregnant, but I still didn’t think something like this would happen to me.
“I felt like my whole world had fallen from under me. The hardest part was telling my son who was 13 at the time.”
Michelle, who works as a controller for West Mercia Police, finished her chemotherapy in December 2022 and had a short break from treatment before starting 15 sessions of radiotherapy.
She’s now on a targeted cancer drug called abemaciclib, that blocks proteins that stimulate cancer cells to grow.
Despite ongoing treatment, Michelle completed Race for Life in 2023 with her son Thomas while her mum Brenda cheered them on.
Paula Young, Cancer Research UK’s spokesperson in the Midlands, said: “We are incredibly grateful to Michelle for her support and know her story will make an impact on everyone who hears it.
“Whether people are living with cancer, taking part in honour of or in memory of a loved one, or just in it for the fun of fundraising, it doesn’t matter how or why you take part.
“Whether running, jogging or walking – there is a place for everyone.”
Since it began in 1994, more than 10million people have taken part in Race for Life, the UK’s biggest fundraising event series.
In 2023 the event raised £33m to support scientific breakthroughs.
Visit raceforlife.org to enter.
