The C Word

Helen goes solo for the first time in an episode to share her story with cancer.

Can you imagine being diagnosed with stage four cancer six months after you got married? In 2016, aged 29, Vick Pellowe was in newlywed bliss when she found a lump in her neck. She was diagnosed with stage four non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and her life was turned upside down. In this episode she and Helen discuss young cancer survivorship, cancer treatment and infertility, mental health challenges after a cancer diagnosis and toxic positivity.

Ultramarathon runner, COO, and cancer lady Julia Becker Collins joins The C Word to share her experience of being diagnosed with thyroid cancer at the start of the pandemic in 2020. As Covid caused the State of Massachusetts to shut down, Julia was waiting for a biopsy to be booked. After navigating an overloaded health system during cancer treatment she struggled to figure out how to rebuild her life. She and Helen talk about what happens when you're life changes overnight, how to cope when you don't have a thyroid, why it's important to find your people, and more!

How many times have you been asked ‘you’re over it now, right?’ by a well-meaning friend or family member? It can be hard trying to explain our cancer experience doesn't leave us. Mandi Chambless shares her experience of being diagnosed with ovarian cancer at 28. Mandi was given a 20% chance of survival beyond five years, 13-years later she’s beaten the odds. In the first five years after her diagnosis she was terrified of recurrence, in fact, the fear of her cancer returning remains.

Three years after being diagnosed with breast cancer, Rebecca Van Dijk is undertaking IVF. She and Helen share the impact of cancer on fertility and what it has meant for them.