On 13th March 2021 I will be shaving my hair once again.

A little over 4 years to the day that my hair started to regrow from my first ever chemotherapy cycle.

I have been living with Metastatic Breast Cancer since summer of 2019. My diagnosis came just a few months after my 2 yr all clear from my original diagnosis.

Since March 2020 when the world was worrying about Covid I have been trying to keep my cancer under control. I am now on my 4th new treatment in less than 12 months, this includes a clinical trial, oral chemotherapy and now on to my second type of IV chemotherapy. My latest treatment will cause me to lose my again. So rather than waste an opportunity I thought I'd try to raise some money for charities that are close to my heart.

Quick cancer lesson, metastatic breast cancer is also known as secondary, stage 4, incurable. It is treatable with a view to manage the disease progression, slow it down and prolong life but as it stands I will never be cancer free.

So my charities of choice are Black Women Rising and Make 2nds Count.

Black Women Rising is a project that was set up by The Leanne Pero Foundation to empower women from the BAME community. There was a lack of support and knowledge and Leanne set about creating a safe space for women of colour to talk about their cancer and Leanne has been at the forefront of changing the way that cancer in BAME communities is seen and how it is represented in the wider world.

Make 2nds Count was set up to raise funds specifically for the research into secondary breast cancer and to provide support to patients of the disease. Secondary Breast Cancer research does not receive the same amount of funding as primary breast cancer so it is so important that organisations like Make 2nds Count are making sure that research projects are funded in the hopes that they may be able to extend the lives of people with MBC for many more years.