My name is cerys and in july 2015 i was diagnosed with metastatic papillary thyroid carcinoma or in other words, thyroid cancer. In august 2015 i was given life changing and life saving surgery and treatment but in the process my thyroid was completely removed along with all the lymph nodes on the left side of my neck, i became a female frankenstein.

My treatment caused many issues and caused severe lows, stress on my friendships and relationships and led to me taking a gap year from uni, putting my clinical psychology dreams on hold. cancer was a wall i needed to break through. But what upset me the most was it held me back from being the fit and active person i used to be. i lost myself, i lost my body, i lost my world...

I returned to university in 2016 with a new strength, will and determination. I still have difficulties managing my energy levels and often struggle with balancing work, university, friends, relationships, hobbies and my general health. However, i am supported by a large strong network of people who ensure that my workloads isn't causing too much trouble and the university are extremely accommodation regarding my illness and current health and well-being.  I'm very lucky. 

A cancer diagnosis is tough and you feel like you're on your own, digging through the dirt or lost in the ocean waiting for someone to find you, pull you up and fish you out. unbelievable strength is needed to go through this adventure and you need support, connections, goals, distractions, hobbies, activities. I owe my survival not just to my medical team but to my clic sargent workers, who make sure i am ok everyday, who introduce me to new friends and new activities. They inspire me and give me courage to keep going even in the darkest of times, i want to give something back.

Although i run to support clic sargent, i also run to show that we are stronger than the we cancer we fight and despite and beyond our battle wounds and scars we can carry on living, fighting, surviving. There is life after cancer and we will run all over it!