Hove woman diagnosed with breast cancer takes on the iconic MoonWalk night-time marathon

Thousands of women and men wearing decorated bras and brightly coloured bra t-shirts will gather in London this May to walk a Half Moon (15.1 miles) or Full Moon (26.2 miles) to raise money and awareness for breast and other cancers. Among them will be Claire Kaye (50) from Hove.

"Early in 2022, my left breast started to feel a bit different. I couldn't feel a lump or anything, but my breast felt as though it was getting bigger and heavier than the right one. My GP couldn't find anything, but referred me to the breast clinic anyway. I had another physical examination, but was told that everything was fine and not to worry.

“Later that year, I received a reminder that I’d paid for a mammogram as a private health benefit via work. Although I’d been told that everything was perfectly ok with my breasts, I decided to have the mammogram anyway, especially as I’d paid for it. Maybe I had some sort of sixth sense.

“It was following that mammogram in October 2022, at the age of 48, that I was finally diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer in my left breast and lymph nodes. I still couldn’t feel any sort of lump and if it hadn’t been for this somewhat random mammogram, it’s likely it wouldn’t have been found until much later. Triple negative breast cancer is very fast growing, so it’s possible that there wasn’t any cancer when I had the appointment earlier in the year. We will never know. Whatever made me take up that private mammogram possibly saved my life.

“My treatment was nearly 6 months of chemotherapy, followed by surgery, which involved a lumpectomy, as well as a partial removal of my lymph nodes. I also had immunotherapy for 4 months, and finally three weeks of radiotherapy.

“I feel very lucky – I didn’t have too many side effects during my treatment and it was only during the tail end of my chemotherapy in January and February 2023, when I was pretty exhausted, that things got really tough. I’m acutely aware that everyone has their own very personal treatment plan and that you never know how you’re going to react. I also felt very blessed to have such wonderful support from my husband Shane, teenage children Finley and Imogen, the rest of my family and loads of local friends.

“Having completed my treatment, I decided that I wanted to sign up for a charity challenge related to breast cancer, one which everyone I knew could take part in, if they’d like to. Being a walking event, The MoonWalk London is really accessible and was an ideal choice. It’ll be my second MoonWalk – I also took part in 2015, before I was diagnosed with breast cancer, and I absolutely loved it.

“I not only want to raise money, so that I can give something back, but also to raise awareness. I’m a relentless nag these days – on the first day of every month, I’m reminding everyone (women and men) to get checking!”

To sign up for The MoonWalk London 2024 on Saturday 18th May, go to www.walkthewalk.org