My holiday tiredness turned out to be terminal breast cancer but I'm living life while I can

The 60-year-old, from Edinburgh, decided to take a bit of a break from everyday life and went on a trip with her sister to the Borders hoping to relax and recharge her battery. But it was there that Susan realised something might be more seriously wrong than just fatigue.

She said: “I got a week's break from everything, and with my sister, we were just in the Borders, and we were climbing up a little hill.

“You know what it's like when you're tired, you just keep going. But this was kind of like, ‘actually, I can't manage this’. I've always been quite active, and whilst I was struggling to be active when I was juggling so much with my mum in the last couple of years, that wouldn't have normally been a problem for me.”

After months of feeling unwell, Susan found a lump on her breast while she was in the shower and from that moment her life changed. She was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer and was told it had already spread to her bones.

Susan said: “That's when it was kind of ‘look, it's stage four, it's moved to your bones, so there's no surgery possible for you’ sort of thing. You know, they can't take out your bones. So I was told at that point they had made an appointment for me to go and speak to the oncology team.

Susan was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer last year | Susan Connarty

“That was probably about a four hour wait, and it was February of last year. It was an absolutely horrible day wandering around in the Botanics and the pouring rain, just marking my four hours.”

It was Susan’s sister who suggested that she speak to the team at Maggie’s Cancer Centre, where she was able to explain her situation.

Susan said: “I was with my sister at that point, so she was being as amazingly supportive as she could be, and in horrible circumstances. And she suggested ‘why don't you just go into Maggie's?’, which is just right next door to the kind of oncology department, which I did. I sat down, probably in a state of shock and told them what was going on, and they just couldn't have been kinder.”

Maggie’s has provided support for Susan when she needs it most - and the centre has helped her reset her perspective when things get tough.

Susan explained: “At points, mentally, it's really hard to cope with what you're dealing with, and just to try and be positive and keep focusing on the here and now, and not go too far ahead and get concerned about what's what's coming.

“But when I am in that place, or if I get close to that place, I just jump in the car and go. You don't need an appointment, they're there. Unfailingly, I come out feeling like, ‘I'm fine, I'm good with this’. They understand exactly where you're coming from. They've got all the experience in the world.”

Susan is now taking on a 37-mile cycling trek in aid of Maggie’s next month, after she was inspired by Sir Chris Hoy and his cancer diagnosis.

She added: “I don't use them on a daily or a weekly basis at all but I always know they're there when I need it. And it's just such a complimentary support to the medical side of things, which, again, has just been amazing. But they are really great.

“They're just an amazing resource that you've got access to, and you've got it for nothing. That is why we’re trying to do something like this, so I can show how much I appreciate the support, but also help make sure it's there for me going forward and the next person that needs it as well.”

Susan now takes medication that will prolong her life and, more importantly, give her a chance to live her life well.

She said: “At some point the cancer will overcome the drugs. But for now, I've got a window of time that I can really live my life well, and it's not as overwhelmingly awful as you think. That's what really resonated for me, with the message that Sir Chris Hoy was trying to get across. When he spoke I very much understood where he was coming from. I recognised the horror of speaking out publicly because you're feeling okay, you're trying to get on with your life as best as possible. It's difficult to raise your head above the parapet. But you know there's a positive message in there. You can live well, and you can carry on.”

And Susan is doing her best to carry on. Once a keen cyclist, Susan has enjoyed getting back on the saddle.

She has worked alongside her mum’s former carers Lauren and Roz as she seeks to get back to fitness, with the pair running a pilates club which Susan attends.

Susan explained: “For me, working closely with Lauren and Roz has been brilliant. And Roz is actually going to be cycling with me as well on the day. We couldn't manage to get in the same slot, but she's supporting me through the cycle. So that's really lovely. And I'm really grateful to them for their support and encouragement to keep at the fitness side of things”.

You can find Susan’s donation link here.