Episode 13 Going Back Giving Back

One of the things I love about us Brits is our spirit of generosity.

If I can give back to somebody who had a similar struggle to my own,

then that's what I'd like to do.

Last year nearly three-quarters of us gave to charity.

But what if you had the chance

to go back and relive moments from your past?

I wish I was 18 again!

-I'm expecting Mum and Dad to walk out now and say hello. You know?

-Yeah.

Moments which would inspire you to want to help someone today.

I want to give back to those people that are going through that,

that I went through in the beginning.

If I can give something to somebody else that would change their lives,

-I'd really love to.

-Fantastic.

Someone who had no idea this life-changing windfall was coming.

I've got, potentially, her dream in my hand.

-How are you feeling?

-Nervous.

There'll be surprises...

-How are you?

-Good.

Thank you so much.

Thank you.

With acts of generosity that will change people's lives...

-I'm really excited.

-We're all crying.

-Do you need a hug as well?

-Yeah, thanks.

..forever.

That's brilliant.

Somebody that just does that for people, it's just amazing, it really is.

This is Going Back Giving Back.

I'm in West Yorkshire to hear the truly moving story

of an inspirational mother.

Six years ago, her world was turned upside down,

and it's this experience that's driving her

to help somebody else today.

We'll discover how she suddenly found herself facing

the greatest challenge of her life.

Having just had a little girl, thinking how can this be

happening to me at this moment in time?

Could taking her back to the place that gave her hope

inspire her to help someone else?

-How you doing?

-Fine, yeah.

For me, the experiences I had here were life-changing, really.

And the suspense mounts, as we prepare for a huge surprise.

-She has no idea.

-We'll be drowning in the lake at this rate!

Here we go.

With a special gift for one incredibly deserving young woman.

It is an emotional thing that I've been through,

and for someone to reach out and do that for me is a beautiful thing.

It really choked me up.

When the woman I'm about to meet was diagnosed

with a life-threatening illness

she gave up her job in the city to launch her own company,

to help those in a similar situation to her own.

She is phenomenal,

and I can't wait to hear her motivational story.

Today 39-year-old Amanda

runs her own successful organic skincare company,

but she was once a head-hunter in a large recruitment company.

Six years ago, Amanda was on maternity leave

from her job in the city, when her world was rocked

by some devastating news.

-Hello.

-Hello.

-How are you?

-Nice to meet you, OK, thank you.

-Really nice to meet you.

-Come in, come in.

-Thank you very much.

-Lovely house you've got.

-Oh, thank you.

-It's lovely to see you.

-And you, and you, thank you for coming.

It's a pleasure. Who says it's never sunny in Yorkshire?

-I know, a beautiful day today.

-Amazing spot, as well.

-Thank you.

So go on, then, what's motivating you to give something back today?

So, six years ago, when I was 33, I was diagnosed with breast cancer.

They found out it was starting to spread through my body.

I'd just had a little girl in January,

the diagnosis was in the June.

Amanda's daughter was just six months old.

Instead of enjoying these first few months as a new mum,

Amanda was suddenly faced with the prospect

of not seeing her little girl grow up.

And I found very much

that having a breast cancer diagnosis at the age of 33,

I felt extremely isolated, in that most of the people I knew that were

going through breast cancer tended to be that little bit older.

It wasn't the easiest time of my life.

-Understatement of the year.

-Yeah.

Amanda underwent surgery

and months of chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

The treatment may have saved her life,

but it left her physically and mentally exhausted.

I had a little girl to look after, so I didn't really have

the opportunity to stop, I had to get on with life,

and despite the fact there were times

when I was going through the chemotherapy

that it was hard to pick my head up from the pillow.

But then Amanda received more bad news.

Doctors discovered she'd inherited a genetic fault

in a crucial gene called BRCA1, which repairs damaged cells.

This meant there was a serious chance

she'd develop cancer again in the future.

If she wanted to reduce the chances of that happening,

she would have to make the life-changing decision

to have her breasts and ovaries removed.

That must have been such a tough decision to make, though?

It was. I thought, how could I live with myself

if I don't do something about it and the cancer comes back?

How do I explain to my little girl, "Mummy knew what she was doing,

"she chose not to do anything about it

"and now she's got cancer again"?

It was an agonising decision.

Although she bravely decided to have the surgery,

Amanda and her husband James had hoped to extend their family,

but now their little girl Myla would never have a brother or sister.

That was six years ago.

Amanda's now fully recovered and enjoys an active family life.

She even takes part in physically demanding challenges

to raise money to help other women with breast cancer.

So yeah, had quite a few operations over the past few years,

but now fit and healthy and back to a normal me.

And how supported did you feel throughout all this?

I was lucky to have an amazing group of friends

that massively supported me. There were times they'd turn up at my door

and they'd pick up my little girl

and say we're taking her off for the day,

you can't look after her, you need the help.

My parents and my in-laws were around at the time,

and they helped out.

And it's this help you want to offer somebody else then, is it?

If I could offer somebody that support,

I would love to be able to do so.

Well, listen, in order for you to give something back,

we need to go back, so I've got the car outside.

-Fancy a little trip?

-OK, let's do it.

-Good.

We're hoping that by taking Amanda on a trip into her past,

it will revive memories of her journey back to well-being,

and help her make the massive decision

of how she might be able to help somebody else today.

So go on, then, first things first.

-Have you got any idea where we're going?

-No.

We're taking Amanda back to a place that was key to her recovery.

It's bound to remind her

of the moments when she was first diagnosed with breast cancer.

I had the mammogram, I had the biopsy there,

and they said to me there and then in the room when I was by myself,

"We're 90% certain you've got cancer, but come back on Friday

"and we'll tell you the severity of the situation."

What goes through your mind when someone tells you that?

I can't begin to imagine.

I think I felt numb at the time.

I didn't really...

I didn't really know what to do.

I was completely shocked by the situation

of having just had a little girl,

thinking how could this be happening to me at this moment in time?

Typically, Amanda's first thoughts weren't for herself

but for her husband,

who'd lost a much-loved aunt to the disease the previous year.

I drove home from the appointment in the hospital thinking,

how do I possibly explain this to him?

I remember walking in the door and thinking I can't tell him.

But he's been a massive support.

He's very positive and he's helped me through it absolutely massively,

so I'm really, really lucky to have him.

Talking about the cancer being diagnosed and treated,

the way it's treated has changed so much during the years.

Yeah, it has, and I think as far as cancers go,

breast cancer's one they seem to... it seems to be much more treatable.

It's a much better survival rate now.

The treatment of cancer has been revolutionised

since the Second World War.

Doctors have learned to use combinations of chemicals

to attack the disease through chemotherapy,

and technologies like ultrasound have helped them detect many more tumours.

These developments have helped cut

the number of deaths from breast cancer in the UK

by almost a third since the early 1970s.

But even the diagnosis of you having the gene,

I would imagine, back in the old days,

that that wouldn't be possible.

No, it's only over the past ten years

they've been able to detect that faulty gene.

I suppose it was a time bomb in the old days, wasn't it?

Yeah, definitely.

In the last 30 years, scientists have improved

their ability to combat cancer even further,

thanks to advances in genetics.

They can now pinpoint specific genetic mutations

like the one Amanda has inherited,

which makes the body more susceptible to cancer.

This understanding has helped save the lives

of countless women like Amanda.

When you go through something like you've gone through,

does it make you kind of look at life in a different way?

Completely, yeah, yeah.

I think it just puts a perspective on life for you,

and makes you appreciate what you've got.

It's changed my life, really.

I used to work 60, 70 hours a week in a big recruitment company

and I thought, what am I doing to myself?

I'm dropping my daughter off at nursery at 7am,

I'm picking her up at 7pm, I'm missing out on her growing up.

Daughter Myla has been a great support to her mother,

particularly when things were at their very toughest.

In a cruel twist of fate, when Amanda was being treated for cancer,

both her mother and father were also suffering from the disease,

and all three were being treated in the same hospital.

I always remember a time when...

I think it was two days before I was going in for my mastectomy operation

and my mother was in hospital, having had a seizure,

my father was in hospital, about to have bowel cancer surgery...

-What?

-And I said goodbye to my mum,

I wheeled my dad into the bowel cancer surgery

and I was having a bit of a word with myself,

thinking hold it together, hold it together.

My dad started crying. I thought I can't cry for him,

I'll stay strong and tell him it's going to be OK.

Then I went to pick my daughter up from nursery

and I could feel myself getting a little bit tearful.

So when I got home, I sat down and said to Myla,

Mummy's just feeling a little bit tearful,

but you just be the best girl you can possibly be

and we'll get through what we've got to get through.

She went upstairs into her bedroom,

got her little comfort blanket, got her dummy,

put her comfort blanket on my shoulder,

put her dummy in my mouth and said, "It's OK, Mummy, it's OK, Mummy",

-and that was when she must've been maybe 20 months old.

-Gosh.

-So she knew.

-She picked up on it, didn't she?

-Yeah, exactly.

-Wow.

We've brought Amanda back to the place

that was a lifeline to her when she had cancer, The Haven in Leeds.

The chemotherapy Amanda received in hospital saved her life,

but it also took a heavy toll on her.

What helped her get through it all was knowing

when things were really tough, she could escape to this sanctuary.

The centre aims to create a calming environment

that allows women like Amanda to get some much needed TLC.

Could coming back here today inspire her to make a big difference

in someone else's life?

So what's it like being back?

Ooh, happy memories, sad times, but happy memories.

A place that made me feel better.

-Yes, exactly.

-So nice to be back, nice to be back.

I don't know, I expected it to look like a hospital

-but it doesn't at all.

-No, to me, walking in,

it felt like a peace sanctuary, just calm and relaxed

and a place that you'd walk out of

feeling a better woman than you walked in.

So tell me a bit about what they did to you.

To me they offered a range of alternative therapies.

I had shiatsu massage,

which was amazing and I felt physically better.

Hypnotherapy, which focused my mind and I'll always remember

the lady I saw saying, I can't do much about the situation I'm in,

but I can do something about my attitude and my mood towards it.

So I used to wake up every day and think, choose your mood,

-and that was instilled in me by the hypnotherapist.

-Gosh.

And whilst you were having your treatments here,

you were also going through chemotherapy at the same time?

I would make an appointment to come here

a week after each chemotherapy session,

as I knew that week would be an absolutely horrible week.

Cancer can very easily consume you,

but having something to look forward to,

in coming here and knowing what a difference it would make to how I felt,

it was a brilliant place to come to.

-How amazing. Can we go in?

-Let's go in, yes.

-Let's do it.

We're are about to reacquaint Amanda

with someone she hasn't seen in a while.

-You probably recognise that lady.

-Hello, Deborah, how are you?

-Hi, Amanda.

-Nice to see you again.

-You look amazing.

Thank you very much, and you.

-Nice to see you.

-And you, I'm Deborah, the manager here.

Thanks so much for having us.

-She speaks very highly of this place.

-Good, good.

-Fantastic place.

-What was she like when she was here?

-A bit nervous first time we met, I think I can safely say.

-Yeah.

Things were not good, were they?

You were just about to embark on chemotherapy,

-so a really tough time. But, er...

-But came through the other side.

-Yeah.

-Yes, looking fantastic.

It feels, the minute you come in,

-it feels so welcoming.

-Yeah, we've tried to make it

as nonclinical as possible, so people do feel really relaxed.

What we hope is that they feel very safe and supported,

because we do only deal with breast cancer here.

-Amazing. Can we have a look around?

-You certainly can.

-Go on, you lead the way.

-My pleasure.

For Amanda, this place was a lifeline,

a chance for her to escape the anxiety, stress

and the often overwhelming thoughts she had when dealing with cancer.

-This is lovely.

-Yeah, I remember it well, sitting in this chair,

-having my hypnotherapy.

-Oh, really?

-Yeah, happy memories.

-How many rooms like this have you got then?

-Seven.

-Seven?

-Seven individual rooms.

And you do the whole massages and everything like that as well?

Yeah, aromatherapy, reiki, reflexology, shiatsu.

That's what you were talking about, wasn't it, shiatsu?

Yes, which was fantastic, absolutely fantastic.

I had no idea what shiatsu massage was when you recommended it to me,

but it really, really helped me.

Physically it wasn't what I anticipated at all, to be honest.

I thought if it's a form of massage I'll be having these nice

oils and having a nice, relaxing rub of some sort, but it was using

the pressure points to alleviate problem areas in your body.

-Gosh.

-It worked massively for me.

Yes, it's really good for side effects of the chemotherapy

-and the radiotherapy.

-Right.

Deborah, thanks so much for letting us in here and giving us a guided tour.

We're going to carry on looking, if that's all right?

-OK. Pleasure. Lovely to see you.

-Thank you. Great to see you again. See you later.

-We'll go downstairs.

-Perfect, OK.

-There might be a little surprise for you there.

-OK.

Taking Amanda on this journey has clearly sparked memories of

the help and support she received when she needed it most.

I'm hoping it will also focus her mind on how she might be able

to help someone else in a similar situation today.

Coming up, our team has been on the case looking for

a young mother whose life has also been affected by breast cancer,

and we think we've found her.

She's a mum of two,

and like Amanda was also in her 30s when she was diagnosed.

She thinks we're making a programme about the condition.

She has no idea that she could be in for a special gift.

'But first, we've got another surprise for Amanda.

'We're about to reunite her with someone she hasn't seen for

'many years.'

-Do you remember that lady?

-Hello!

-Christine.

-How are you?

-I'm well, thank you. How are you?

-I'm good, thank you.

-Nice to see you.

-And you, how are you doing?

-Fine, yeah.

You two haven't seen each other for ages, have you?

-No, six years, almost.

-Six years, gosh! It is, yes, six and a half years.

-You look extremely well.

-So do you, too.

-Thank you, getting there.

One of the things the centre does is give women

a chance to talk to other women in the same situation.

'Christine also had breast cancer and came here for support,

'which is where she met Amanda.'

-This is the room that you first met?

-We did.

-It is, yes.

-On induction day.

-Yeah. God, time flies.

-How were you feeling back then?

-A little worried.

-Yeah.

-We didn't know what was coming, did we?

-Yeah.

-But we had a great experience.

-Yeah, exactly.

-A life-changing experience.

-Exactly.

-Really?

-Yes, all the therapies, and it just gives you

so much confidence and it's nice to be with ladies who have been through

the same things you've been through, and to share the experiences.

Yes, I think that's what makes the difference, isn't it?

You feel like you're the only person going through what you're

going through, and then you come into a room here and realise

actually there's other people going through exactly what you're going through.

-That's right, yes.

-It just makes it that bit easier, doesn't it?

-Yes.

I remember very clearly sitting in that chair, listening to the

stories of the other ladies in the room and everything they were

going through, the diagnosis, the treatment, and it just really

hit home, the difficulties of each individual in the room, and

despite the fact we all had breast cancer, each person sitting here

had their own story and their own problems, their own difficulties.

When Amanda was at her lowest ebb, it was coming here and

sharing her experience with other women affected by breast cancer,

like Christine, that gave her the strength to carry on.

How do you feel coming back in here?

Relieved to be six years on from it,

but at the same time it just feels calm and relaxed and peaceful.

-It seems like this place in a way sets you up for the future?

-It does.

-And not to dwell on the past too much?

-Yes, exactly.

It's an opportunity to move away from cancer and help you feel

a lot better, isn't it?

Confidence, yeah.

The hospitals help to fix you,

but for me, the experiences I had here were life-changing, really.

-And also made you change your whole career plan?

-It did, yeah.

I left my busy job as a director of a recruitment business and

set up a natural organic skincare company, which I now run from home.

It gives me the flexibility to work my own hours and spend more time

with my little girl.

-That's amazing, isn't it?

-It is, yes.

-That a place can do that.

-Yes.

So coming back here, to a place where you were so happy,

at a time when you were experiencing such difficulty, has it reinforced

in you that desire, that you want to give something back to someone?

It has, yeah.

Six years on now, I'm a different person to what I was then.

I'm stronger and fitter and if I can help somebody to move on with

their life and help put cancer behind them,

then I'd love the opportunity to do that.

I'll leave you to it because I know you've got loads to catch up

with and I'll see you soon.

-OK.

-Nice to meet you.

-See you later. Bye.

-Bye.

Bringing Amanda on this journey into her past has reminded her of

the terrible dilemma she faced after being diagnosed with cancer.

I thought, how could I live with myself if I don't do

something about it and the cancer comes back?

How do I explain to my little girl?

When we knew what she was doing, she chose not to do anything about it and now she's got cancer again.

It also sparked happier memories of the love and support her

family gave her when she needed it most.

Got her little comfort blanket.

Got her dummy and put her comfort blanket on my shoulder,

put her dummy in my mouth and said, "It's OK, Mummy."

And most importantly, it's helped focus Amanda's mind on what

she can do to give something back today.

I had a lot of people around me to help look after

me and to support me and if I could offer somebody that support,

I would love to be able to do so.

Amanda is such an amazing person.

Being diagnosed with breast cancer so young made her feel isolated.

Well, this place made her realise she's not alone.

It also helped her remain positive about life and now she wants

to give back and help someone in a similar situation.

We think we've found someone who fits the bill.

37-year-old Taylor is a single mum living in Sheffield with her two children.

12-year-old Jasmine and Jack, who's 10.

Come on, Jack, you can roll.

-You've got to go in front.

-I've got to go in front.

-Yay, I get escape.

Last year Taylor's world was turned upside down when she was

diagnosed with breast cancer.

Two, three, four.

It's been an incredibly tough time for Taylor.

Like Amanda, she's undergone extensive treatment and is

currently in remission but it's still early days in her

recovery and she's struggling with the after-effects of all the

medication and treatments she has received.

Taylor thinks we're making a programme about living with cancer.

She has no idea of the real reason behind Amanda's visit or that

she could be in for a surprise gift.

Could meeting Taylor inspire Amanda to give something back?

I'm excited to meet her. Really excited to meet her.

Hoping that I can find out a little bit more about her experiences of

going through breast cancer as a young mum,

see if there's any similarities between my own situation and

hopefully help her to go forward and put cancer behind her.

-Hiya, nice to meet you. I'm Amanda. How are you?

-Lovely to meet you.

-I'm fine, thank you.

-Hello, how are you? What's your name?

-My name is Jack.

-Hi, Jack.

-Jasmine.

-Hi, Jasmine. Nice to meet you.

Do you want to come in?

As a single mum,

Taylor has worked hard to raise Jasmine and Jack on her own.

They in turn have been a great support to their mother over

the past 18 months.

Taylor's illness has had a massive impact, not just on her,

but on the whole family.

-So, shall we go and have a little chat?

-Yeah, that'd be great.

-Do you guys want to go upstairs?

-Yeah.

-See you in a minute.

So, it's great to meet you then, Taylor.

Tell me a little bit about your story and what you've been through.

Well, it was in 2015.

I was in the shower and I leant over and I felt this drawing pain

in my right breast so I had a bit of an examine and I was really

shocked to find this lump in my breast, so off I went to the

GP and within two weeks, I was diagnosed with breast cancer.

-Gosh. Scary times.

-Very. I was really, really shocked.

Telling your young children you have a life-threatening illness is

one of the hardest things a young mother can face,

but it was something Taylor had to do.

And how old were your children at the time, then?

-My daughter was 11 and my son was 9.

-Gosh.

-Yes. I was all right in that moment when they were telling me.

I felt that distancing effect. I was watching myself a bit.

-Like an out-of-body experience.

-That's it. I think you understand.

Yes, I do.

But it wasn't until I thought about telling my children that it

really, really hit me.

-I got quite upset.

-I'm not surprised, yeah, yeah.

Coming back to tell them was really hard.

To treat the cancer, Taylor underwent a mastectomy

followed by a course of aggressive chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

To experience all that was tough enough but the chemotherapy

also damaged her heart and in her already weakened state,

she suffered heart failure, leaving her in a critical condition.

Taylor, whose life revolves around caring for her children

suddenly found that she was the one who now needed looking after.

I was very, very poorly. My mum and dad were up here looking after me.

Couldn't do a lot for myself with showering and dressing and

cooking and cleaning and taking care of the kids, which was really,

really difficult.

-Yeah, I can imagine.

-Not to be like a proper mum to them was really hard.

And how did you find the radiotherapy, then?

Just going in every day was very tiring and time-consuming

and waiting but, I mean, they were all really lovely, I have to say.

Thankfully, Taylor is getting stronger

but even today she is in constant pain.

I've still got quite a lot of side-effects from the treatment,

because of the heart condition and I've got some nerve pain

so I walk with a stick but I have pain issues

but that can be controlled with medication.

Fatigue is something else. It's something I really struggle with

but I do feel that I'm moving on.

-It's just taking time.

-I remember someone saying

to me, "It's a marathon, not a sprint." So just take your time,

take each day as it comes and plod on.

Yeah, I feel like I won't ever be

the same person I was before breast cancer

but that doesn't mean to say that I'm less of a person

than I was or a worse person than I was.

In some ways I'm a lot better, I think...

Makes you stronger in some ways.

Yeah, from what I've learned from the experience.

18 months after Taylor's original diagnosis,

her cancer is now in remission.

However, the disease still casts a huge shadow over her life.

-And how are you feeling now?

-I feel like pieces of the puzzle

are starting to fall back into place but there are some things

still holding me back - fear of it returning

and hopefully these things will improve in time.

It's just really hard, I think,

to know when I will stop thinking about cancer every day

or when will it not be the first thing I think of

when I wake up in the morning.

When will it not be the last thing I think of when I go to bed?

I think it takes time. For me, it's six years on now and I don't wake up

and think that and I don't go to bed and think that.

The fear never goes away but you learn how to manage it

-and I've learnt that.

-That's really reassuring.

Amanda knows how cancer treatments

that are ultimately life-saving can be exhausting.

She's keen to use her own experience and insight to help Taylor.

I remember for me I felt a little bit isolated in that there are,

unfortunately, so many people going through

breast cancer but there didn't seem to be many people my age

that I could relate to the different difficulties you have

of going through cancer with kids.

Being the youngest person in the waiting room is quite isolating.

As young mothers, Amanda and Taylor have shared

many of the same difficulties whilst dealing with cancer.

Amanda, however, has the benefit of being six years on

from her own cancer diagnosis.

Today she leads an active life

and takes part in fundraising challenges.

I feel now I am fitter and healthier and stronger,

I think mentally and physically, than I was before

but if somebody had been saying this to me five years ago

that I'd be in this position now, I would probably have struggled

to believe that I could do it, but I did

and I'm sure you will be able to, as well.

It's not easy, it's not easy but I do think with time

it does get so much easier. I remember the point

when I was not strong enough to even pick up a pint glass

after the surgery that I had.

I'd walk 100 metres down the road and think,

"I've got this far now, I can't go any further."

I had to just stop and have a little rest

-on the pavement then walk back home.

-Yes, that sounds very familiar.

It changes. Since then I have managed to do a 10k run,

I've swam two miles in Lake Windermere

in 16 degrees water temperatures, I've rode in a dragon boat race

and these are things that five or six years ago

I definitely didn't think I'd be capable of.

You've got to give yourself time and I think not put too much pressure

on yourself to try to get there too quickly.

Be patient with yourself, know that you'll get there

-and I'm sure you will. I'm sure you will.

-Thank you.

I'm not very good at being patient with myself.

I know. To be honest, me neither, me neither.

I've had to learn a little bit of patience along the way.

One challenge that both Amanda and Taylor faced

has been the impact of cancer on their families.

For Taylor, seeing how upset her children were at the prospect

of life without their mum was particularly hard.

Your children were that bit older than mine so I think with that

there comes more challenges - that you're having to explain to them

what you're going through and they understand more, don't they?

They do. They did ask a lot of questions and have been upset

at the thought of the possibility of losing me in the future.

It is a particular worry for my daughter.

It's definitely been a challenge and still is.

But they are great. They look after me beautifully when I need them to.

And hopefully they keep you going

-and give you that bit more strength to...

-I think they do.

They're giving me a sense of purpose and a reason to get out and do stuff

and wanting to go on and trying to make as many memories as possible

and do as many things as possible

because I realise how important that is now.

-Yes, it's that time with them, isn't it?

-Yeah.

And doing things you enjoy and appreciate in life and family

and what's important to you.

For me, I really found that cancer puts life into perspective.

-Oh, definitely.

-You very quickly come to realise

what's important in your life and you prioritise differently

to what you do before.

Have you got any exciting plans for the future, then?

For myself, as I said, I've gone back to work

-so I'm getting my Masters degree.

-Oh, wow! That's brilliant.

It's something I've always wanted to do.

I don't put stuff off any more like I used to.

"Oh, we'll do that next year."

"We'll do that in a couple of years."

You know, "It's not the right time." "No, let's do it now."

I think it's important to just have a bit of me time, isn't it?

-Enjoy your own company and...

-Yeah.

..reflect and think about what's going on.

Having heard Taylor's story,

Amanda is now keen to know what she might be able to do to help her.

With all the challenges, then, that you've had going on,

what would make your life that little bit easier?

More time in the day and some more energy. It is really...

It is the fatigue. The only thing that's going to make that better

is perhaps being kinder to myself.

What talking to you has given me, to be honest,

seeing you being six years down the line

and achieving the things that you've achieved, especially physically,

that really gives me some hope that I can do that in time,

that this isn't how it's always going to be.

I think cancer can consume you. It becomes everything you think about,

it's all everybody talks about.

I got to the point where I thought, "Do you know what?

"I'm a bit fed up of telling people how I feel

"so I'll just tell everyone I'm doing OK."

-I'm fine(!)

-Exactly. For me, having those little things

to look forward to made a massive, massive difference

and just trying to find a way to have some time to myself

where I concentrated on getting better,

both mentally and physically.

It gets easier with each day and I think you'll be capable of more

with each day and as time passes, most definitely.

-Thank you.

-Well, thank you so much for sharing your story with me.

It's been absolutely brilliant to meet you.

-I hope we'll keep in touch.

-Yes.

-If there's anything I can do at all

-to help in your journey, then please do get in touch.

-Thank you.

-I will do.

-Oh, thank you.

-Thank you for listening.

-No problem, lovely to meet you.

-And you too.

So, what has Amanda made of her meeting with Taylor?

I can completely relate to where she is at,

how she's dealing with the fear that she's living with.

If I could have the opportunity to just give something back

that would really help her, that would be absolutely brilliant.

For Amanda, Taylor's story has such strong echoes of her own experience

as a young mother living with breast cancer.

She's struggled with the fatigue that Taylor's feeling

and understands the fear

of whether you will live to see your children grow up.

But Amanda came through it all

which is why she could now be the perfect person to help Taylor,

but before she decides whether that is something she can commit to,

she's going to talk it through with her best friend, Kate.

-Hi, Kate.

-Hi.

-How are you?

-I'm good, how are you?

-Good, thank you.

-Lovely to see you.

-Lovely to see you too.

So, what have you been up to?

Oh, well, it's been an interesting few days.

Yesterday I met a really lovely lady. She is a similar age to us

but in the midst of still going through cancer treatment.

She had a mastectomy straightaway, launched straight into chemotherapy

which was quite tough on her because it shut her heart down.

Oh, my goodness! I've not heard of that before.

It's caused her massive mobility problems

and she's got two young kids that she's looking after

whilst going through all these difficulties

so I really felt for her. She's going through a tough time

and what really hit home to me

was when she said she goes to bed every night thinking

might she die of cancer and she wakes up in the morning thinking

could she be dying of cancer?

How did that make you feel? I bet that took you back a bit, didn't it?

It did, yes. It just made me think about where I was

five or six years ago. Time has moved on for me

and life is so much easier but I felt like it took me

back to the time when I was in her shoes

and the difficulties I was facing and how tough it is.

Gosh, and I bet it really helped just meeting you,

even seeing what you've been through.

Yeah, so, it just got me thinking, "What can I do to help her?

"How can I make her life that little bit easier?

"What can I do to make her feel that bit better, to calm her anxieties,

"to help her feel physically a bit stronger?"

She mentioned a lot about how fatigued she was feeling

and the tiredness, that constant fear that's ringing in her head.

What helped you when you are going through that, do you think?

-Well, I was lucky, I had you.

-Ah!

So I had the support from friends like you,

my family were around me who were amazing.

Obviously going in and out of hospital, you're having the surgery,

you have the chemotherapy to get you fitter and healthier

but it's tough. I think she just needed a little bit of me time.

We discussed that. Whilst you're going through cancer,

life goes on around you and you can't stop,

-especially with Taylor...

-With the children.

Yeah, she's got two young children that can't make it easy for her

-to focus on herself.

-I can remember that and how much you...

Just having that space to yourself and time,

-it really, really helped you, didn't it?

-It did.

From a well-being perspective, made you feel much, much better.

Definitely. So what do you think?

Do you think I should try to do something to help her?

I think that's a lovely idea

-and I think you're the best possible person to do it.

-OK.

I'm going to see what I can do to help.

Knowing that Kate is behind her all the way

has strengthened Amanda's desire to give something back.

Now she has to decide just what she can do to make a difference

to the lives of Taylor and her children.

It's a big decision

so Amanda's going to take a little bit of time to think it all through.

I'm on my way to catch up with Amanda

who I know has met up with Taylor and that meeting must have been

a huge source of comfort to Taylor.

After all, Amanda knows exactly what she's going through,

but is she ready to give something back and help Taylor?

Let's go and find out, shall we?

Amanda's waiting for me just around the corner

from where Taylor and the kids are having a day out.

I can't wait to find out what she's decided to do.

-Hello, nice to see you again.

-Lovely to see you, as well.

-So how did the meeting go?

-It went well, it went well.

It was great to meet her. I could relate to the world of pain and fear

that she's living in right now so I remember it well.

It felt like I had been transported back in time

-to me five or six years ago.

-That must have been quite tough, as well?

She's in a difficult place

but hopefully she'll be able to move on from it positively.

-Do you think you can help her?

-I hope so, yes, I really hope so.

In what way can you help, do you think, then?

What I would like to do is give her a gift

of some treatment from the Haven organisation.

'Over the past year,

'Amanda's completed a series of fundraising challenges

'that have raised a staggering £7,000.

'Amanda wants £1,000 of this money to be used to provide a programme

'of support for Taylor.'

Once she's met up with the manager there, they can devise a course

of treatment that's tailor-made for her needs.

That's going to be an amazing gift for her, make such a difference.

I hope so. It made a difference to my life massively

and I hope it will make the same difference to her.

That's very, very generous of you, and also so powerful.

-You know, you talk so passionately about how it helped you.

-Yes.

-And almost changed your life.

-It did. It did.

Going through cancer is a pretty scary experience.

It's not just the physical side of it,

it's the mental side of it, as well.

And they can help with both and hopefully they can help Taylor

in the same way that they've helped me.

'Amanda has put down on paper all that she wants to say to Taylor.'

I've written a little letter to her

which I'm looking forward to passing on to her later.

-We're going to do it right now. Forget later.

-All right, OK.

She's actually on a day out with her kids

so I think we should just grasp the nettle and go for it.

-Let's do it.

-Come on, then.

-Amazing.

'Taylor, Jack and Jasmine are enjoying their trip

'to the local wildlife centre and have no idea

'what's about to happen.

'This is Amanda's big moment, revealing to Taylor and her family

'what she's really been up to. Just how will Taylor react?'

-I'm nervous.

-I know, I'm hearing some dinosaurs roaring, as well.

They're not real, don't worry.

They're just having a lovely day out. They have no idea we're coming.

They're not expecting us.

I know, it's going to make such a difference to her.

-I hope so.

-Right, shall we do this?

-Let's do it.

Come on, then. (She hasn't seen us yet.)

Let's keep going. She still hasn't seen us.

Still hasn't seen us. This is good. She has no idea.

-We're going to be in the lake at this rate.

-Here we go.

-Taylor.

-Yes.

-I'm Aled Jones, nice to meet you.

-Nice to meet you too.

-Hi, guys. How are you doing?

-You've surprised me.

-Sorry.

You thought we were making a programme

about living with breast cancer. It's not the whole story, is it?

I was just massively inspired to meet you,

so I've written you a little letter for you which I was hoping

-you could open and read out.

-Oh, thank you so much.

-You've got your glasses on.

-I have got my glasses on. I can see.

"Dear Taylor, hearing your story transported me back in time

"to when I was in the midst of cancer treatment,

"exhausted by the treatment and fearful of the future.

"Moving on from cancer takes time and patience

"which I know we both struggle with." Definitely.

"But with the support and a positive frame of mind,

"I'm sure you'll be back to the real you in the not so distant future.

"I would like to offer you a gift

"that I feel would make a massive difference to how you are feeling -

"a course of treatment from the Haven.

"This is an amazing organisation offering support

"and complementary therapies

"to people affected by breast cancer

"and they massively helped me both physically and mentally.

"They will do a personalised assessment for you and your children

"and offer a range of courses to support you.

"All the best for a healthy future."

-Thank you so much.

-You're very welcome.

I'm really touched. Beautiful words, as well.

-It made such a difference to you, didn't it?

-It did, yeah.

Mentally, physically, a calming, relaxing effect.

-That's what you need. That's what you deserve.

-Thank you.

You're going to have loads of space,

-loads of time, loads of pampering, as well.

-Exactly, exactly.

-That's awesome.

-It's good news, isn't it?

-What do you think about that?

-Awesome.

-We must keep in touch.

-Yes, definitely, we must keep in touch.

We just wanted to give you this little surprise

-and for you to have some time.

-Thank you.

-Pleasure. Nice to see you.

-Thank you so much.

-Cheers.

-It's been lovely to meet you.

-And you too.

Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.

-I'm really touched by it.

-Look after yourself.

-And you too.

-Take care.

-Thank you.

-See you, guys. Bye-bye.

-Bye.

-Take care.

-Awesome.

-Yes.

Oh, you're lovely.

Lots of hugs.

Seeing Taylor with her children really does bring home

how much as a family they must have been through.

I hope this gift from Amanda goes some way

in helping them on their road to recovery.

I know from my own personal experience what a difference

that will make to Taylor. It will help with the pains

that she's suffering with, it'll help with the fatigue so it should

get her back to the person that she used to be, if not stronger.

It was a huge surprise.

I really wasn't expecting anything quite like that.

It is an emotional thing that I've been through and for someone

to reach out and do that for me is a beautiful thing.

It really choked me up.

To be able to help someone that has been in a similar situation to me

is just brilliant, absolutely overwhelming. Makes me very happy.

It's been such an honour spending time with Amanda

who is such a positive and inspiring person.

She knew exactly what Taylor and her children needed to move forward

and now thanks to Amanda, well, the family has the support

and Taylor has the me time

that she so desperately needs and so deserves.