On Saturday 28th September, Sara, Claire, Jo and Jen, a team of very novice hikers will embark on a 24-mile challenge, hiking the three peaks of Yorkshire (Ingleborough, Whernside and Pen-y-ghent) in one day, to fundraise for Flat Friends UK, a charity close to Sara’s heart.

Here’s Sara’s story…

I was diagnosed with a grade 3 breast cancer in April 2023 and underwent a mastectomy and immediate reconstruction with an implant, followed by radiotherapy and then long term hormone treatment and an anti-cancer drug. Fast forward to March 2024, and I went into hospital early for my first annual breast screening, where a small, grade one tumour was discovered in my other breast. This was a devastating double blow and it hit me and my family hard. The new primary tumour was unrelated to the first and I learnt that I'm in under 2% of women who receive this type of diagnosis. I opted to have another mastectomy and as the implant in my reconstructed breast had been damaged by radiotherapy, I made the decision to have it removed and I chose to go fully flat.

Prior to my surgery, my brilliant breast consultant connected me with two ex-patients who had also chosen to go flat. They gave me incredible reassurance and support before and after my surgery. One of them told me about Flat Friends UK and I joined their online community, which is a joyous and warm hub of amazing women, who have been through similar experiences to me - They helped me to feel less alone, they normalise living flat and as a charity, they help to promote life without reconstruction as a positive outcome.

It's now over five months since my surgery and I'm healing nicely and continuing to take my preventative treatments. I'm cancer free again and I pray that I'll stay that way. I feel incredibly proud of my flat chest and my scars and I'm ready to take on some challenges, build up my fitness and give back to a small charity, which continues to be a big support to me, as there's still stuff tough days with drug side effects and concerns. But having this challenge to focus on has made all the difference.

I also want to add a massive thank you to my fabulous friends Claire, Jo and Jen for joining me on this hike - They've been an amazing support through my breast cancer journey and hopefully we can now support each other as we hike, sweat, crawl and scramble up these three peaks!

We'd love any donations small or large! Thank you so much for your support. ❤️