I really believe the Centre for Life saved my life, says mum

A COUNTY Durham mum has thanked NHS geneticists at the Centre for Life for saving her life. Abbie Yorke, 33, was convinced that a "dodgy gene" had caused both her grandmother and aunt to get breast cancer.

- SAM VOLPE

But it was only when her mum was herself diagnosed with ovarian cancer that she was invited for genetic testing. And this revealed that she has the dangerous BRCA gene which brings with it a terrifying 80% chance of breast cancer and 40% chance of ovarian cancer.

For social worker Abbie who is mum to eight-year-old Beau this led to an incredibly difficult decision to have a preventative mastectomy to prevent her from developing breast cancer. She went under the knife last year, and has been supported by a genetic counsellor all the way through her experience.

Abbie, from Bishop Auckland, was speaking following the 25th birthday of Newcastle's Centre for Life.

Home to the popular science museum, what is often less-realised is that a range of pioneering health services are also based there, including the NHS's genetic counselling service.

Abbie said she had been "clueless" about this until she received a letter in the post after her mum's diagnosis in 2023.

She said: "I had always thought that there was a dodgy gene in our family. I remember going to the GP and saying that, because of the history.

"My great-grandmother passed away because of cancer. My grandmother and my aunt both had breast cancer. But it wasn't until my mum was diagnosed with ovarian cancer that it all came about and I was able to be tested.

years. And what I think has changed is the pace of development in science.