Sarah Cawood has admitted that she ‘needs to stop drinking’ as she confessed her gruelling health issues in and Instagram post on Sunday following her cancer battle.
Sarah Cawood has admitted that she ‘needs to stop drinking’ as she confessed her gruelling health issues in and Instagram post on Sunday.
The TV presenter, 52, was diagnosed with stage one breast cancer in September 2022 after doctors discovered a lump during a routine mammogram.
Sarah underwent a lumpectomy with sentinel node removal followed by radiotherapy and long-term hormone treatment.
And now she has explained that she need to stop drinking ‘completely’ as it causes her to ‘fall off the wagon so quickly’ and leaves her with further health issues.
She penned in a clip posted to the social media: ‘I need to stop drinking. Like stop completely.
‘I don’t drink loads but l increasingly feel like I lose time when I do and it’s (I think) making my arthritis worse (and there’s a multitude of other issues that go along with it that we can delve into another time)
Sarah Cawood, 52, has admitted that she ‘needs to stop drinking’ as she confessed her gruelling health issues in and Instagram post on Sunday following her cancer battle
The TV presenter, 52, was diagnosed with stage one breast cancer in September 2022 after doctors discovered a lump during a routine mammogram
‘The thing is: 1 FIND IT REALLY HARD NOT TO DRINK. I fall off the wagon so quickly. I HATE when people make me feel bad about not drinking: I’m a people-pleasing drinker.
‘I also get bored when everyone else gets boozy and I feel the FOMO and like l’m missing out on the drunken bonding. But l’ve had cancer FFS! What am I even doing drinking?
‘So l’m putting it out here for advice and encouragement. And to show you that no matter how much it looks like someone you follow has their shit together, they probably don’t behind closed doors. Onwards.’
Sarah as also opened up over daily fears that her cancer has returned in an Instagram video earlier this year detailing the ‘thoughts of a cancer survivor’.
Sarah revealed the cancer was gone in six weeks, yet understandably, her worries continue to linger and she detailed her concerns in a short video of her driving her car as text popped up on the screen reading: ‘Daily thoughts of a cancer survivor.
‘I feel tired… Maybe it’s back. What’s that odd lump? Maybe it’s back. I have a scan soon… What if it’s back?’
A caption below the clip said: ‘This is the reality of anyone who has had any kind of cancer. I never struggled with health anxiety before but post-breast cancer it’s all consuming and it wears me out a bit tbh.
‘I have been feeling tired since the new year began and although it’s probably life just life-ing, there’s always a niggling worry that It’s Back.
And now she has explained that she need to stop drinking ‘completely’ as it causes her to ‘fall off the wagon so quickly’ and leaves her with further health issues
Sarah as also opened up over daily fears that her cancer has returned in an Instagram video earlier this year detailing the ‘thoughts of a cancer survivor’
‘All I can do is carry on doing healthy things, moving my body, practicing mindfulness and living each day with gratitude that I got to breathe again this morning.
‘So on we go! Batting away those intrusive thoughts and Getting On With It. To anyone either going through a cancer diagnosis or anyone who has recovered from cancer and feels like this: I’ve got you, and my inbox is always open.
‘And remember, anything that doesn’t feel right: get it checked out. Early detection is key.’
The heart-wrenching video has not been the first time Sarah had concerns over the return of the grueling diagnosis as broke down in tears on Instagram in May as she revealed she was ‘anxious’ because, she feared ‘her breast cancer may have returned.
Sharing a video crying in bed next to her sleeping son Hunter, 13, Sarah said she had an appointment booked for that week after having a recent mammogram and she hoped she was ‘overreacting’.
She wrote: ‘I got a text today telling me I have an appointment on Tuesday… I had a mammogram two weeks ago, but I also told the breast care nurses I was concerned about some marks on my other boob, so I don’t know whether this appointment is about that (which has already disappeared) or my mammogram.
‘I’m sure it’s the latter, but the fact it’s a bank holiday weekend and the appointment is so soon has me all kinds of anxious.
‘It never leaves you. The fear that It’s Back.’
Sarah said she was ‘happier than she has ever been’ as she admits the ‘shadow’ of cancer ‘never really leaves you’.
She continued: ‘I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about but here’s the thing: I’m happier than I’ve ever been.
‘My life is wonderful and I don’t want it to end anytime soon, and this stupid f***ing thing that I had, it’s always there, like a shadow on a sunny day, threatening to ruin this amazing life I’m leading.
Despite the improved situation, Sarah’s worries continue to linger and she detailed her concerns in a short video of her driving her car also adding an emotional caption
‘I hope I’m overreacting, and I’m sure I am, but I’m posting this because this is the reality of having cancer: it never ever really leaves you.
‘The disease does, but the anxiety is with you for the rest of your life. Here’s hoping it’s a long and healthy one.
‘To all my pink sisters: I’ve got you, I feel you, I am you.’
Two days later Sarah revealed she had received a follow-up call saying the appointment was concerning a rash on her other breast and was nothing to worry about.
Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. Each year in the UK there are more than 55,000 new cases, and the disease claims the lives of 11,500 women. In the US, it strikes 266,000 each year and kills 40,000. But what causes it and how can it be treated?
What is breast cancer?
It comes from a cancerous cell which develops in the lining of a duct or lobule in one of the breasts.
When the breast cancer has spread into surrounding tissue it is called ‘invasive’. Some people are diagnosed with ‘carcinoma in situ’, where no cancer cells have grown beyond the duct or lobule.
Most cases develop in those over the age of 50 but younger women are sometimes affected. Breast cancer can develop in men, though this is rare.
Staging indicates how big the cancer is and whether it has spread. Stage 1 is the earliest stage and stage 4 means the cancer has spread to another part of the body.
The cancerous cells are graded from low, which means a slow growth, to high, which is fast-growing. High-grade cancers are more likely to come back after they have first been treated.
What causes breast cancer?
A cancerous tumour starts from one abnormal cell. The exact reason why a cell becomes cancerous is unclear. It is thought that something damages or alters certain genes in the cell. This makes the cell abnormal and multiply ‘out of control’.
Although breast cancer can develop for no apparent reason, there are some risk factors that can increase the chance, such as genetics.
What are the symptoms of breast cancer?
The usual first symptom is a painless lump in the breast, although most are not cancerous and are fluid filled cysts, which are benign.
The first place that breast cancer usually spreads to is the lymph nodes in the armpit. If this occurs you will develop a swelling or lump in an armpit.
How is breast cancer diagnosed?
If you are confirmed to have breast cancer, further tests may be needed to assess if it has spread. For example, blood tests, an ultrasound scan of the liver or a chest X-ray.
How is breast cancer treated?
Treatment options which may be considered include surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone treatment. Often a combination of two or more of these treatments are used.
How successful is treatment?
The outlook is best in those who are diagnosed when the cancer is still small, and has not spread. Surgical removal of a tumour in an early stage may then give a good chance of cure.
The routine mammography offered to women between the ages of 50 and 71 means more breast cancers are being diagnosed and treated at an early stage.
For more information visit breastcancernow.org or call its free helpline on 0808 800 6000
