The Well supports patients across Barnsley living with cancer with positive activities to support them including access to complementary therapies including massage, reiki and facials.

The reason behind this charity event is a friend of mine Rachel is currently battling stage 4 cancer. This is her second fight with this terrible disease. And her strength and determination throughout is just incredible. If she can stay positive and strong... then let's help this charity to continue to help women just like Rachel

Rachel's own words

'My Cancer Journey – An Update

In 2021, at just 24 years old, I found a lump in my breast and was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. What followed was the fight of my life: a mastectomy, chemotherapy, radiation, and hormone therapy. It was brutal—but I got through it. I was declared cancer-free. For nearly four years, I believed the worst was behind me.

Then, in January this year, everything changed.

After a car accident, I started experiencing severe back pain. While waiting to be seen, I picked up a leaflet listing symptoms of advanced breast cancer—and I had every single one. I mentioned it to my GP, but was told it was likely sciatica.

The pain got worse. A visit to A&E brought the same dismissal—until one doctor, thankfully, decided to order a CT scan.

I’ll never forget the moment a nurse came in and said she’d watch my daughter while I was taken to the “quiet room.” I didn’t need anyone to tell me. I already knew.

“It’s not good news,” they said. “There’s a 7cm tumour on your spine. It’s fractured the bone.”

The cancer was back. And this time, it was stage 4.

Since then, ive been resting at home, on lots of pain relief, I’ve been placed on hormone therapy and forced into early menopause to cut off the estrogen that fuels the cancer.

Stage 4 breast cancer doesn’t come with a cure. The current NHS treatment plan is to slow the spread, not stop it. My prognosis under this plan is 3 years.

But here’s the thing: there are treatments out there—newer ones that can increase survival rates from 31% to over 57%, with some patients even reaching remission. Sadly, many of these options aren’t available through the NHS, or are only offered at the very end, when hope is already fading.

So, I made the difficult decision to seek care privately. It’s not easy to ask for help—honestly, I struggle to accept even small gestures like someone buying me a coffee. But this isn’t about pride. It’s about survival. I want to live. I want to watch my daughter grow up. I want to get married. I want more time.

Since my diagnosis, our lives have turned upside down. Ayden, my partner, thought it was just a normal day when he came to pick me up from the hospital. It ended up being his last day of paid work. He’s now my full-time carer—helping me in and out of bed, with showers, meals, and taking care of Iyra.

We recently travelled to Scotland for a consultation and came back feeling hopeful. We learned about several promising treatment options, including radiotherapy to my sacrum. It won’t extend my life, but it can stabilize my spine, relieve pain, and give me a better quality of life—maybe even allow me to take Iyra to the park. But the NHS has refused it, saying it won’t help me live longer. We’re fighting this decision. If we can’t get it through the NHS, we’ll have it privately.

My NHS treatment plan currently includes Ribociclib to slow tumour growth, menopause-inducing therapy to reduce estrogen, bone injections to combat brittleness, and other medications to manage serious side effects—like heart complications. My NHS oncologist is incredible and truly fights for me, but he’s limited by what the system allows.

Cancer is incredibly complex. Until I was thrown into this world, I had no idea how complicated it could be. For clarity: I have secondary breast cancer, meaning the original cancer has spread to other parts of my body—in my case, the bones. It’s not bone cancer; it’s breast cancer that has spread to the bone.

There was a recent debate among my medical team about doing a bone biopsy to confirm the cancer’s origin, even though they’re 99% sure it’s the same cancer from 2021. But a primary cancer in the sacrum is ONE IN A MILLION but One member pushed for it “just to be certain.” But bone biopsies are invasive, painful, and carry a risk of spreading the cancer further. I didn’t consent, and my oncologist supported that decision.

We’re now waiting on the next scan to see how the tumour is responding to treatment. Once we have the results—and the funds—we’ll return to the private hospital to explore further options. If radiotherapy isn’t approved through the NHS, we’ll pursue it privately.

We’re also exploring cutting-edge treatments like Capivasertib and Alpelisib, and something called a “tissue-free biopsy,” which is genuinely groundbreaking. It uses blood samples to analyze the tumour’s molecular response—offering personalized treatment insights. Sadly, the NHS doesn’t offer it, but it could make all the difference.

This has been the most difficult chapter of my life, but I’m not giving up. I’m fighting for more time, for better days, for my family. And with your support, I believe I can get there.

So please, if you can, join us on an amazing day to raise money for a great cause. And if you cant be there in person, please donate where you can, and know that it's going to a great cause to help women just like Rachel

Thanks

Sam