Strictly Come Dancing Professional, Amy Dowden, shares the importance of early cancer diagnosis in a new BBC documentary.
Amy Dowden, 34, who is best known as a professional dancer on BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing, was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer in May 2023. She was just 32.
In a documentary aired yesterday, Strictly Amy: Cancer and Me, Amy shares her personal cancer journey, filmed just six days after her initial diagnosis.
Amy took the decision to share her experience of diagnosis through to treatment – which included a mastectomy and eight rounds of chemotherapy, to shed light on the reality of having cancer at a young age and to share the importance of early cancer diagnosis
“The first time I felt the lump in my breast was the day before we were about to go on honeymoon – I just knew, oh no – I need to get this checked. I just felt a bit sick really to the stomach.
“I saw the Doctor and he said ‘Amy, it’s not good news. We have found something’. And I just said, ‘Is it cancer?’ and he said ‘Yes’.”, Amy said.
Incidence
According to Cancer Research UK, there are around 56,800 new breast cancer cases each year, with 1 in 7 UK females being diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. Advancements in treatment mean that 75% of women will survive breast cancer for 10 years or more.
Breast cancer symptoms
The most common symptoms of breast cancer are:
- a new lump or thickening in the breast or armpit
- a change in size, shape or feel of the breast
- skin changes in the breast such as puckering, dimpling, a rash or redness of the skin
- fluid leaking from the nipple in a woman who isn’t pregnant or breastfeeding
- changes in the position of the nipple
Alice Bowden, GatewayC Programme Lead, said: “We are pleased to offer a range of resources to support primary care professionals in detecting breast cancer at the earliest possible stage, and to ultimately improve patient outcomes.”
For primary care professionals, we have a range of resources to support the early diagnosis of breast cancer and secondary breast cancer, including:
Courses
Podcast
- Breast Cancer podcast episode, featuring Pete Wallroth, Founder and CEO of Mummy’s Star charity
Bitesize videos
- Breast pain – is it a sign of breast cancer?, featuring Miss Clare Garnsey, Consultant Oncoplastic Breast Surgeon
After a recent concern revealed in her documentary that the cancer had returned, these were found to be benign changes. Amy has now been given the all clear and will be returning to Strictly Come Dancing this year.
