Breast cancer survivor Victoria Derbyshire says Sarah Harding's death to the disease was 'so brutal and so unfair' as she praises the singer's campaigning 'legacy' on Lorraine
- News presenter, Victoria Derbyshire, 52, was diagnosed with cancer in 2015
- She survived the illness after a mastectomy, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy
- Now she has praised the late Sarah Harding for raising awareness of the illness
- Victoria wants women to be aware of lesser-known symptoms of breast cancer
Victoria Derbyshire has said Sarah Harding's death from breast cancer aged just 39 was 'so brutal and so unfair' as she praised her 'legacy' of helping to raise awareness about the disease.
The BBC News presenter, 52, from Manchester, was diagnosed with the condition herself in 2015 and underwent a mastectomy, six cycles of chemotherapy, and 30 doses of radiotherapy before doctors told her she was in remission five years ago.
Sarah, a member of pop group Girls Aloud, died on September 5 after speaking about her own experience and warning others to get any possible symptoms checked out as soon as possible.
Speaking on Lorrain today, Victoria discussed her own experience with breast cancer and applauded the late singer for raising awareness.
Sarah Harding, who died earlier this month from breast cancer aged 39, shared this photo of herself receiving treatment in hospital on Instagram last month
BBC news presenter Victoria Derbyshire, 52, praised Sarah for raising awareness of breast cancer and some of its lesser-known symptoms
Victoria said: 'That is Sarah's legacy. I didn't know her, I read her book. She wrote in her book that her doctors had told her that last Christmas would be her last Christmas. But that is her legacy.
'Young women - you know, she was 39 - it's just so brutal and it's so unfair - young women, please check your own breasts. If there's any issue, get straight to the GP, do not mess about.'
Victoria was on the show to discuss MacMillan's upcoming Coffee Morning charity event, where people get together to have a drink and make a donation, as well as some of the lesser known symptoms of breast cancer.
She urged people to take part and raise money for the charity. Speaking about how she is now, Victoria told Lorraine: 'I am really well, I am alive, I am grateful every day, I'm happy, I'm one of the lucky ones.'
She added: 'When you get a cancer diagnosis and you're going through treatment, you can't get away from it.
Lorraine said one positive that came out of Victoria's experience with breast cancer is that she too has been able to encourage people to go the doctor is they notice symptoms
The presenter went through gruelling breast cancer treatment - undergoing a mastectomy, six cycles of chemotherapy, and 30 doses of radiotherapy
'It's all-consuming, you just want to get through it, you want to live, you want to live for a long time afterwards. I'm lucky I've reached that five-year milestone - it is a milestone - but I don't take anything for granted.'
She added: 'My approach to life now is "oh my God, experiences, I want to say yes, let's do stuff" because none of us knows how long we've got.'
Victoria has previously revealed that she realised she may have cancer after noticing she had an inverted nipple, and that her right breast had dropped lower than her left.
She told Lorraine: 'Women know their own breasts best, so any slight change that looks a bit different from your normal, is just worth getting it checked out.
She added: 'I don't want to alarm anyone, because more often than not, it will be nothing. But it's just worth getting it checked out.'
Lorraine said: 'Exactly, and making sure you look for the signs...anything that's out of the ordinary.'
Victoria encouraged people to contact their GPs and tell them they are concerned they have cancer symptoms, so they can get an appointment as soon as possible.
'If you say you are worried it's a symptom of cancer, there's no messing about. The NHS is incredible when it comes to cancer,' she said.
MacMillan's official Coffee Morning takes place on Friday September 24.
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