I thought rash was minor allergic reaction – then I was told the worst | UK | News

A mum-of-two who put off going to the doctor after finding a rash on one of her breasts is urging others to ensure they get an appointment if they suspect something is wrong.

Sam Ritchie had been to her GP a few times before when she had found lumps, but she thought the rash was just a reaction to something.

As she works at a hospital, she has many friends who are nurses, and when she sent them pictures of the rash no one thought it was anything bad.

But, three weeks after discovering the rash, she decided to go and see her GP and was referred to the hospital.

Ms Ritchie said: “With the GP, they’ve got certain triggers they’ll have to follow.”

She added: “So obviously, when you see the breast cancer campaigns, a rash or marking around your boob is one of the things, isn’t it, that they mention. So they’ll have referred me based on that.

“When I was at the hospital they did all the tests. The woman doing the ultrasound didn’t use the word cancer, but she did say there is something there and it will need treatment. And it went on from that.

“I think a part of me thought it was before I went, even though everyone was telling me they didn’t think it was.

“I think in the back of my mind, I just, I think I knew I had something there. It was a shock.

“It was scary. Obviously, you’ve got it in your head, what cancer means and, you know, working at the hospital, I’ve seen the horrible sides of it.

“But I also know it can be cured. You can go through treatment and you can be okay, but initially hearing that is obviously super scary.”

While she was at the hospital they did several biopsies, taking samples of the lump which was behind her nipple, her skin where the rash was, and her lymph nodes, to work out what kind of cancer she had.

The 41-year-old then had to undergo four months of chemotherapy and then a mastectomy.

She said: “It was super, super hard. I’ve got two children, so I was always, I refused to look weak, you know like I’m suffering; I had to look positive for them.

“I didn’t even tell any family members or my kids after diagnosis for, I think, two months until I got my head around it.

“The chemo plan for breast cancer is just brutal. And I was really, really poorly.

“And it is super hard going back again when you know that it’s going to be, it’s going to be hard and it’s going to make you feel rubbish.

“But I think the end was always in sight, and I had a lot of support.”

Ms Ritchie, from York, says one of the hardest aspects of the treatment was losing her hair.

She said: “A woman’s hair is their crowning glory, isn’t it?

“If you have a bad hair day, I feel like [cancer made me have] a bad hair day every day for a year. So, it was it was really, really tough.

“My daughter was helping me to wash my hair, and it was just coming out in clumps.

“She’s only 13, bless her. So that side of it, I think, was probably the most tough.

“You know, I did have a lot of rare side effects, which was weird, but there’s always some sort of medication to kind of counteract that.

“It’s the hair loss that I found the hardest.”

Ms Richie wore a cold cap during her chemotherapy treatment, which cools down the scalp and so reduces blood flow to the hair follicles.

This is supposed to make the hair less likely to fall out as the follicles are less sensitive to the effects of chemotherapy. But she says it didn’t quite work in the way it is supposed to.

The A&E operations manager said: “I lost a huge part of it, more or less where the cold cap was, to be honest.

“I kind of looked like a little old man. I had long hair around the back and then a big bald patch.

“But because I didn’t shave it, it allowed me to have this ‘hair system’. It gives you different options. It’s a permanent thing. It’s like a wig, but it’s a permanent thing. You can wash it.

“It’s a bit more natural. And I do it for people with alopecia and stuff as well. So I just wanted to share that and look for the positives, as much as it’s horrible.

“And I don’t particularly like my hair. I used to have lovely hair. But, you know, it’s just something you’ve got to deal with.”

After being diagnosed with breast cancer in October 2023, Ms Ritchie got the all-clear at the end of last year.

She is now working with NHS England on its Help Us, Help You campaign, which encourages people to see their GP if they think they have a health issue.

She said: “The more you put it off, whatever it is, the more serious it could be.

“Early detection is key and as scary as it is, it’s the not knowing that’s scarier, isn’t it?

“And, whatever it turns out to be, there’s always a way that you can tackle it. I think the earlier we diagnose it, the less treatment you’ll need to have as well, you know, if it was to be cancer.

“So, I think that’s the thing, isn’t it? If people keep putting it off, I didn’t even put it off for that long, and it was stage three. 

“You don’t want it to spread anywhere, and you want to have the least invasive treatment possible, really, because it’s not very nice.”

Now that she doesn’t have to have chemotherapy treatment, Ms Richie is planning to enjoy herself by going on a lot of weekend breaks.