A new drama is being shown on BBC1 Sunday night 8.30-10.00, The C Word. We are aware that the subject could be very emotive for those living with breast cancer, secondary breast cancer and their families. We have immediate support available to you via our website: breastcancercare.org.uk/breast-cancer-informationas well as all the support so readily available from everyone on this forum, day or night.
The Helpline will re-open after the bank holiday on Tuesday morning 9am and will be ready to take any calls for support or answer any questions you may have.
In the meantime please use this open space to share your views with each other.
For those of you who are looking for particular support please follow the links below
Yes i read her story in paper today, Biut i dont know if its just me and i know cancer can still kill, but to be honest, i dont want to watch a play about someone dying of it, I lost a dear friend to it last September. I think of her often, going to her daughters 40th party next friday, and she will be sorely missed So no for me i dont want to watch it, id rather think of all those whove survived it, as i hope to. Guess we are different and some might want to watch it, good for them, but it wouldnt be right for me, i dont want to think about dying of it, just learning to live with it. Thats why probably i havent got too involved with cancer groups etc, my dear friend who had ovarian is same, we both feel we dont want to dwell on it too much, just get on with living, i feel now ive lost 6 months of my life to it, and i was more fortunate than many, I want my rads over with and to get on with life, Does anyone else agree with me, interested to hear what others think.June
I am coming up to my 5 year all-clear (diagnosed at age 38) and like NAZ I have spent too much of my life getting past cancer and the brutality of the treatment I had. I feel it stole the last years of my youth and my early years with my children. I have finally felt as though I have moved on this year. I understand that there is a need for true-life drama but even the knowledge that the programme is on tomorrow upsets me and brings it all back. I hope that the programme makers understand the effect it may have on cancer sufferers and give the subject sympathetic treatment but it is all far too close to home for me and my family. I am comforted greatly to know that I am not alone in feeling this way. It all feels a little too much like voyeurism over people’s pain. The news today about Rio Ferdinand’s wife Rebecca is heartbreaking and whilst I know it is unlikely I think it would be appropriate for the BBC to shelve the programme for a week or two.
I think the series will be too hard for a lot of us to deal with towards the end, I cannot imagine anyone going through this experience could possibly benefit from observing what is basically our deepest fear.
I know the poor woman it is based on died, so you cannot re-write history… but for folk going through this or struggling this may be too heavy.
I am not watching anything serious on TV throughout this, just lots of Russell Howard’s Good News, Friends repeats, anything that makes me laugh.
Maybe we shoukd comile a list of films to avoid whilst goung through breast cancer!
1.Terms of Endearment!
2. The one where Bette Midler sings ‘You Are The Wind Beneath My Wings’
3. My Girl
Isn’t it odd that we could watch them as ‘entertainment’ before now? All a little surreal in retrospect.
I think the series is a great idea as it will encourage women (esp younger ones) to check themselves and get straight to GP with lumps.
But surely only a masochist could enjoy watching the ending!
BC still kills one thousand women every single month in the U.K. I will eventually be one of them.
Dramas like this one today may finally help to start to acknowledge we exist and are desperate for new treatments, more money going into research for those with secondaries. Hopefully one day others may see their children grow up, live a longer life. At the moment only 3% of the monies raised towards research goes to secondary research.
It’s upsetting me too as wanted to watch it but it’s really to close to home ? my mum just been round in tears telling me she got
Rid of it then it came back two years later and 59 out of 60 nodes were positve ! My surgeon says I could have up to
6o nides affects so words are round in my head not gud!!! I feel very negative today also with the sad news of Rios wife and think we all need some positve stuff to help us on x
As a recently diagnosed Metastatic IBC - 1st FEC down I read the book for pointers on what to expect from treatment. I will watch, with a glass raised to a very brave, inspirational and funny girl.
There seems to be an assumption that it’s about death. It’s my understanding Lisa Lynch worked as a consultant on this, before being diagnosed with secondary liver & bone cancer. If it raises awareness amongst the younger ones who think it won 't happen to them then it’ll have done its job.
I do appreciate that some people won’t want to watch the programme, and although I used to follow Lisa’s blog I am not sure I will watch it myself. However, I do support it being shown. Like Belinda, I have secondaries (diagnosed in 2009, 7 years after my primary diagnosis) and will almost certainly also be one of the 1000 a month who die from BC in the UK. There is still too little awareness of issues relating to secondary breast cancer, and breast cancer in young women and if the programme can help with this I think it’s a good thing.
Tournesol
I watched The C Word with my husband, both trying not to look at each other, I watched with tears every so often running out the side of my eyes. Although I am recovering from a primary diagnosis of Stage 2 Invasive Lobular cancer as in the program, I felt that I had to watch how the remarkable Sheridan Smith took the role of how Lisa Lynch coped with her cancer in such a no nonsense, sensitive way. Part of me also hoped that my family and friends were able to watch, and maybe get a sense of what it was like for myself and others going through this awful disease.
Cheers, Michele x
P.S. - It goes without saying that thoughts and prayers go out to Rio Ferdinand and his family in their time of sadness. X
I watched it. Wished I hadn’t. It was brilliantly acted by Sheridan Smith but it was too close to home for me. My partner put a reminder on for this drama as he had heard it was uplifting. Bless him. He is working nights so I am on my jack jones and not feeling uplifted. :manindifferent:
I am 3 and a half years past treatment for my primary diagnosis and have finally been able to get on with my life, so found this the hardest thing to watch though of course brilliantly acted by Sheridan Smith and terribly sad for the story it told and the reminder that it could still happen to me.
It is a wonderful story to tell for people who haven’t gone through this and don’t have an understanding of the feelings and processes that go along with breast cancer treatments, but again, brought me to tears from the moment she was in the consultants room.
I will be back there myself on Tuesday for my annual check up and is the only time of the year I think about it now, but well done the BBC for such a wonderful drama and the family for allowing it ?
Thank you Nighthawk.
Just diagnosed so just starting the journey.
Great to hear from you xx
Getting a lot of well meaning messages asking me if I watched it and if I am alright… hmm.
I don’t know if timing is right for me to watch it, but does anyone with secondary think it is a good idea for primary sufferers to watch (or read blog) up front as an education re knowing signs of secondary?
Hi I watche dthe first hour up until she goes back to work. Didn’t know what the ending was going to be but guessed that it wouldn’t be good. Cried through loads of it and found it too close to home. Has really unnerved me and undone alot of the positive work I’ve done in coping with this disease. I’m waiting for the results of my 1st year mammogram (nearly 3 weeks there has been a back log) and am terrified.
Have come to the conclusion that living with the fear of it getting you in the end is the hardest part. Not sure how you come to terms with this. Really wished I hadn’t watched although as I knew it was on (you can’t avoid the trailers) I felt a compulsion to have a go. Brilliant acting but really wished it hadn’t been on as I don’t really think it helps.
I watched it on catchup as had my son and gf home for the weekend and didnt want to watch with them and my husband. The only part that made me cry was when she came out of bathroom having lost most of her hair. For me it didnt go anywhere near telling ’ the public’ about all the awful parts, recovering from initial surgery, loss of sensation in the arm,constant pain from pins and needles, doing all the exercises when in so much discomfort etc, i know they are all smaller things but all add up to making life miserable. Whilst i think it was a good drama and obviously she had input which made it real, they have to condense and was alot about her blog which i feel goes on here every day (and night!) with even better help -
i was diagnosed in feb, WLE and sentinel node showed spread, 2 weeks ago had axillary clearance ( all clear) and hysterectomy 5 days later, as found something in ovary and uterus which susequently turned out to be ok too. Awaiting chemo and radio but still recovering from 2 ops in close sucession. It seems to me to be a constant treadmill of discomfort, nausea and tiredness and waiting for the next bit to make you feel like 'sh*t . People keep telling me i am the strongest most positive person i know which i frequently DONT feel like at the moment and feel i have to fit their bill to keep some happy. My husband is wonderful but like most men doesnt know what to say or do and i feel he’s the one who hears it all, (suppose we did say ‘For better, for worse’ so he signed up for it!)
Dont be frightened of watching it - i’m a nurse and its a bit like watching Casualty and picking holes in it for not being accurate, everybody’s experience is different so look at it like that
Nedd to add that Lisa’s own blog is actually fantastic - reality, just felt TV portrayal was more about her doing the blog, not its true content if that makes sense?
Newly diagnosed, surgery scheduled in two weeks’ time. I watched this with my OH. Sheridan Smith was brilliant, but, strangely, it wasn’t a scene with her that finally made me cry, it was where it showed her husband break down and cry - that resonated with me because my OH is being so good and so strong, but I’m concerned about his lack of a support network. He doesn’t do social media, so, even if I showed him this site (is there a partner’s board?), he wouldn’t use it and, due to his work, his friends are dotted around the country and he wouldn’t get the chance of going for a pint to offload on them. I bought the ebook straight after we finished watching. Me being weird, people had been commenting for the last couple of weeks how positive I’ve been, but, since watching that, my head’s been in a whirl and I’m in tears again. Have to admit though, I haven’t slept very well since diagnosis The OH’s out, so I can vent!
Hi Jill I have a suspected angiosarcoma back to hospital this Friday to discuss I feel v angry that sthg supposed to help has come back to bite me 7 years later … It seems to be quite rare and can only hope a mastectomy will stop it!! Hope you are doing ok …
The OH’s out, so I can vent!