Hansard

I am pleased to take part in the debate and thank Linda Fabiani for securing it. She has given us the opportunity not only to discuss our experiences of breast cancer and highlight the challenges that people continue to face, but to thank the many people who work for breast cancer charities and organisations throughout Scotland.

There will be a person in our constituencies who, at this very moment, is worried about a lump or a change in their breast. They will be awash with anxiety but they will be reluctant to take that all-important step and make an appointment with their doctor. It is for that person that I welcome tonight’s debate. I understand that sense of trepidation, as I am sure we all do, but it is always better to know the truth than to live in fear and doubt, especially where one’s health is concerned. It is for that person, and for the many other people around the United Kingdom who are affected by breast cancer every day, that I welcome Breakthrough Breast Cancer’s touch, look, check campaign.

Like many others, I had the opportunity to attend a session with the Breakthrough team that recently visited the Parliament. I learned more about self-checking, particularly its importance in early diagnosis or simply as a means of alleviating doubt. The team does a fantastic job, and I hope that the crucial message that it promotes is beginning to reap rewards.

I was especially attentive to what the Breakthrough team said about self-checking, especially as I had thought that I had all the information that I needed. Since I was a teenage girl, I have been trained in what to look for and have carried out regular checks on myself. Only last Christmas, my sister and I received a self-examination glove and information DVD from our mum. That was not the gift that I had asked for, and members can imagine the look on my face when I opened the somewhat curious present, but I can honestly say that it is the most important present that I have ever received.

My mum was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 33. At the time, I was only 10 and did not realise how life-changing that diagnosis would be. I did not understand the magnitude of a double mastectomy, radiotherapy, chemotherapy or reconstructive surgery; what I did understand was that it was a frightening experience that caused a lot of physical and emotional pain, not only to my mum, but to the rest of our family. Although that pain reduces over time, it never goes away.

It is because of that that I believe that we need to offer more counselling to families and, in particular, children during such a traumatic time. I know that counselling services have moved on in the past 18 years, but there is always room for improvement.

I also believe that we should make a concerted effort to increase awareness of male breast cancer. The incidence of breast cancer is far lower among men—around 300 men are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in the UK and around 25 in Scotland—but, whatever the figure, more attention must be paid to the men who are potentially at risk. I have already alluded to my mum’s case and, as we have heard, many other members have had similar experiences, but I did not mention that her father—my grandfather—was also diagnosed with, and indeed died from, breast cancer. Therefore—believe me—when I say that we need to do more to increase awareness, I am talking from bitter experience.

My mother’s cancer is genetic, and although I realise that that is also rare, I know that my family is not alone. That is the message that we should be broadcasting to all those people who are affected by breast cancer: you are not alone. Help is always at hand. All you have to do is ask. That is the message of breast cancer awareness month, and it is why we must all keep supporting it.

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