Oct 29, 2021

Breast Cancer Awareness: Get Educated - our top 5 reads!

October is breast cancer awareness month and we’ve teamed up with CoppaFeel! to donate 10% of net profits* from Barrym.com to help the charity educate young people on the signs and symptoms of breast cancer. With approximately 1 in 7 women developing breast cancer within their lifetime, early diagnosis is vital. CoppaFeel!’s mission is to encourage everyone to check their boobs and pecs regularly from a young age, as well as educating people on the early signs and symptoms.

We want to join CoppaFeel! in their mission to educate and inform, so we’ve put together a list of our top 5 reads to get educated on breast cancer through the eyes of those affected by it.

B is for Breast Cancer, Christine Hamill

‘The day after I was diagnosed with breast cancer I found myself blinking back tears while shopping, thinking: Now, what does a breast cancer patient need? All I could come up with was waterproof mascara.’

Christine Hamill explores the emotional and physical impact of her cancer diagnosis, written while going through treatment.

The C Word, Lisa Lynch

'Carrie Bradshaw fell in Dior, I fell in Debenhams… It was theatrical, exaggerated, a perfect 6.0. And it was Significant Moment #1 in discovering that I had grade-three breast cancer.'

After being diagnosed with breast cancer aged 28, Lisa turned her ‘frustrating, life-altering, sheer pain-in-the-arse inconvenience’ of getting breast cancer into writing.

Life, Lemons and Melons, Alice May Purkiss

'It’s essentially about the life of every twenty something – but with some added mental anguish and the mild inconvenience which is cancer thrown into the mix,' Alice says.

Alice was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 26, so this book is essential reading for any younger women going through breast cancer.

Tea & Chemo, Jackie Buxton

At the age of 45, Buxton was diagnosed with breast cancer. She chose to write about her experience to help others also diagnosed realise that they 'don't have to be defined by their cancer'.

With all proceeds going to three cancer charities, Jackie’s book aims to support others like her through an honest, emotional and amusing account of her own breast cancer experience.

Making Pearls From Grit, Isla Aitken

'I really want the book to be a sign to those with breast cancer that they’re not alone – that many people go through this experience, and we’re all here to hold each other up,' Isla.

Diagnosed with breast cancer while on holiday in Japan, former journalist, environmental activist and one-time politician Isla distracts herself with tourist adventures. Back in the UK, however, she is forced to face the reality of treatment.

Sources: https://breastcancernow.org/about-us/news-personal-stories/top-books-read-when-youre-going-through-breast-cancer

*Full price items only, excludes bundles, sale, charity and collaboration products. We are expecting to raise a minimum donation of £9,000 for CoppaFeel! throughout October.