Hansard

I congratulate the member and colleagues on their contributions to date, but it would not be possible to contribute without speaking of our late colleague Christina McKelvie, who died earlier this year from metastatic breast cancer. That cancer spreads to another part of the body when cells break away from the original tumours in the breast and travel to other parts of the body. It can come back months or years after the original diagnosis and treatment, and almost 30 per cent of women who are diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer develop metastatic disease.

I understand that Christina attended a breast screening programme in December 2020. In February 2021, she announced a short medical leave, and another short period of leave followed in September, after which she told us that she had completed treatment for breast cancer. She was also told then that she was in remission, and back came the old cheery, breezy Christina—her worry, her fears and her tears, she kept to herself and her nearest and dearest. In June 2022, when the breast cancer charity moonwalk event was held in Edinburgh for the first time in three years, she participated as part of a cross-party team of women and also sponsored the wear it pink campaign.

However, last year, Christina was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer and went on leave in August 2024 to focus on her treatment. I remember her coming shortly before that to tell a wee group of us, with our coffee, that they had found a large lump on her neck. We feared for her but, of course, said nothing, because there was nothing to be said. She died earlier this year, aged only 57.

Within a few years, she had coped with breast cancer, rung the bell and got back to her smiley, stylish self—her hair had grown back—only to find that this cruel disease had returned.

Christina was unlucky, if I may put it like that, but she tried many treatments. That said, many people live long, productive lives with stage 4 breast cancer, with a variety of treatment options and new medicines being tested every day. If one treatment stops working, there is almost always another one to try.

Support is key at any time, but perhaps especially when cancer returns, after all the treatment, side effects, hair loss and remission—it is cruel. I hope that many have support from family and friends, as Christina had, particularly in her partner, Keith Brown. However, the family, too, will need support. There are professionals and charities such as Macmillan Cancer Support and Breast Cancer Now, community nursing teams, general practitioners and specialists, and even Citizens Advice can help with benefits and other financial or legal issues. It is bad enough coping with the disease without money worries.

I thank my colleague for securing the motion for this sensitive debate in the chamber and for the opportunity that we have had to remember our colleague. As we are, she would, at the very least, have been looking to improve treatments and slow the progress of the disease while seeking a cure, and she would have urged there to be better access to support and care, all of which require, as colleagues have said, better and accurate data.