'My children were just five and six months when I was diagnosed'

A MOTHER diagnosed with cancer at the age of 29 has told of her determination to make every Christmas special for her young children, saying "you never know if this is your last".

- INDIGO JONES

Amy Isidoro began her battle against an aggressive form of breast cancer when her son, Ben, was just six months old and her daughter, Phoebe, was five.

The primary school teacher, from Cwmbran, who had always been fit and healthy with no family history of breast cancer, received her diagnosis unexpectedly.

She sought medical advice regarding her symptoms in July 2020, and was initially reassured that she might be experiencing hormonal changes six months postpartum.

However, when the biopsy results came back, she and her husband Andrew were hit with the devastating news that she had triple negative breast cancer.

She revealed: "I remember thinking, Phoebe's going to see me with no hair and she's going to know I'm not very well. That was my worry. It's going to be strange and she's going to be scared. I didn't want her to see me being unwell."

Amy underwent six months of chemotherapy starting in August 2020. She completed a round of chemotherapy just before Christmas but was forced to return to hospital due to an infection.