22/10/2026
A mum who was diagnosed with breast cancer while her five-month-old son was in a pram beside her has now been told she won't be cured.💔
Fiona Macrae first noticed changes in her left breast in 2004, when she was pregnant with her son Cameron.
After Cameron was born, she said the changes in breast texture were still present, but she was told by doctors that it was likely due to milk production.
However, on one trip to her GP she saw a doctor who referred her to St Bartholomew’s Hospital’s one-stop breast clinic, as he thought it was sensible to get a more specialist opinion.
Despite arriving at her appointment thinking “it will be fine, it will be nothing”, Fiona was diagnosed with breast cancer that day, in February 2005, with Cameron right beside her in his pram.😔
Fiona said: “I remember looking at him and thinking: 'Am I ever going to see my baby go to school’.
Fiona had chemotherapy for six months, before having a mastectomy of her left breast in October 2005, followed by radiotherapy that year.
She describes going through cancer treatment as a “lonely, lonely time” .
Fiona finished her treatment in December 2005 and for 15 years there was no sign of the disease returning.
In the intervening years, she has seen her son Cameron succeed at school and go on to university.
She has also grown her career by setting up her own travel insurance brand that specialises in people with cancer, inspired by her own journey.
Over the years, she had regular check-up appointments and scans to ensure the disease had not returned, and took hormone therapy for a decade, thinking that “everything was fine”.
In 2020, however, she developed a cough that “wouldn’t go away” and said that “at the back of your mind, you’re always worried it’s going to be secondary breast cancer”.
“I was sent for a chest X-ray and that all came back clear,” Fiona said. “And then I ended up seeing a respiratory consultant, and it was through the scans and tests that they discovered that it was metastatic breast cancer in my lungs, and it was also in my bones."
“Once you hit that 15 years, you think: ‘I might be okay now’,” she said.
However, there was one major difference between Fiona’s diagnosis in 2004 to her secondary diagnosis in 2020 – the amount of support on offer.
Fiona found a lifeline in Future Dreams, which provides practical and emotional support for people affected by breast cancer, including opportunities to connect with others going through similar experiences, as well as helping to fund vital secondary breast cancer research and promote breast health awareness. ❤️🩹
My life just changed completely,” Fiona said of discovering the charity.
“We always say it’s the worst club to be in with the best people. I’ve met amazing people, they’re amazing friends in my life now … it’s just a shame it took for us all to get cancer to meet each other.”
Having this support available has made an “immense” difference to Fiona, who is grateful for a place where she can “talk about my darkest fears” with people who understand.
