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The ITV presenter and GP talks about her passion for narrowing health inequalities and stresses the importance for us to know our bodies
What people don’t tell you about breast cancer: in honour of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we will be talking to people who have been affected by the disease – from a survivor to a widower to a fundraiser. Meet the third in our series, Dr Zoe Williams, who talks to us about the importance for women to not be afraid to check themselves and visit the GP. She is a GP herself and a resident on ITV’s This Morning and an ambassador for the Estée Lauder Companies Breast Cancer Campaign.
I knew I wanted to be a doctor from the age of three, when my grandma got me a toy doctors’ set with a little stethoscope. She had trained to be a nurse and a midwife after coming to the UK from Jamaica, and was my early inspiration to work in healthcare.
I haven’t personally been affected by breast cancer but, through my work as a GP, I have known lots of patients who’ve been through treatment. This has included people who are living in social deprivation, which has made me very passionate about health inequalities. Not only do people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds have poorer health, they find it more difficult to access healthcare and so have worse outcomes. Anything I can do to narrow that gap is important, so, when we’re going to Parliament and speaking to ministers as part of Estée Lauder Companies’ campaigning work, I make sure that I’m representing those groups at the table. I don’t allow us to forget that some people don’t have a voice.
For anyone dealing with a diagnosis, my advice would be: don’t be afraid of information. Knowledge is power, always. So don’t be afraid to talk about it, and ask questions. Breast cancer patients often feel the need to protect their loved ones, which sadly means they don’t talk about it, even with those closest to them, because they don’t want to upset their parents, children or other relatives. Children can always tell when something’s wrong, so it’s better to be honest.
And there’s so much help and support out there, so don’t feel that it’s all on you. Whether that’s information from a doctor or specialist nurse, whether it’s reaching out to support groups online, or getting support from your friends, your family, or your boss. Allow them to support you, and let them know what they can do to help. People should not feel isolated going through breast cancer treatment, but so many do, and it breaks my heart to hear those stories. In today’s world, that shouldn’t be happening.
As a GP, I only get 10 minutes with each patient, but that’s sometimes enough to make a real impact on their lives. I love that my work helps me reach huge numbers of people, whether that’s by being on television or writing a column in a newspaper. Even if only a small proportion of people listen to my advice and check their breasts, make that appointment, take up exercise, shift to a healthier diet, or try to quit smoking, it can be really impactful.
Around 44 per cent of women do not regularly check their breasts. That statistic really shocked me. That number is even higher for women in the Black community, or younger women. It’s so important to get the message out there that, if caught early, this disease is now really treatable. It’s so important that we all know our own bodies.
Some people are so afraid of going to their GP, particularly about something as emotive as a lump in their breast. I want people to know that a big part of our job is providing reassurance. The majority of breast lumps are nothing to worry about. Even if your GP refers you to be assessed in a specialist breast clinic, more than 90 per cent of those referrals turn out not to be cancer. So if you’re living in fear of this, the only way to get rid of that fear is to get checked out.
Another thing that puts people off checking their breasts is the worry that they’re doing it incorrectly. While there are resources online to show you how to do it, really, it’s simply about getting used to what your breasts feel like so that, if something does change, you’ll spot it. Take the pressure off, just try it. Your body is yours. It’s amazing, and it’s your responsibility to look after it. Self-checking is such an important part of looking after ourselves.
Some people even think it’s a bit rude to touch their own breasts. But you have more right to touch and look at your body than anybody else on this planet. It’s a form of self-care; brush your teeth, touch your boobs!
A diagnosis can be isolating; even more so if you’re from certain cultural backgrounds. In Black and South Asian communities, there can be shame and stigma around talking about cancer. Which is not helped by the lack of support for people of colour, in terms of things like finding appropriate wigs or prostheses during treatment.
As told to Rosamund Dean
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