In this blog, Clera describes the rollercoaster of experiences and events that have happened since then:
(Photograph courtesy of ITV+)
Back in 2019, I had seen an item on Lorraine Kelly's morning TV Show 'Lorraine' about the 'Change + Check' Campaign that educates viewers on how to spot signs of breast cancer. Not long after watching this I found a lump and was diagnosed with grade 2 invasive breast cancer. This was a huge shock. I went on to have surgery in November and December and started radiotherapy on the first day of the first lockdown in March 2020. Working in the ELFT Finance department, most if not all of my team, were aware of my breast cancer journey. But not many people are aware of what I have been up to since then.
I joined the 'Change + Check' campaign to add my support to the campaign since it had had a huge impact on my own life. The 'Change + Check' campaign raises awareness of the signs and symptoms of breast cancer. It was founded by Helen Addis, the producer of the Lorraine show and a breast cancer survivor. Since joining the campaign, to be quite honest, my feet haven't touched the ground! I could never have known where this would lead.
I have even appeared in a picture on the Pour Moi (lingerie retailer) campaign plastered across a billboard at Piccadilly Circus! (That's me, second on the right!)
Soon after I joined the campaign, we formed a choir. We cut a single called 'Golden' where funds raised will go to the charity Future Dreams which funds research into secondary breast cancer. It was released on Friday 10 November 2023. (I'm first on the left on the single sleeve above!)
We launched with a live performance on the 'Lorraine' programme with singer Joss Stone singing the lead vocals. The choir on the single is made up of 20 women who, like me, found their breast cancer after seeing the campaign on the show. (The single momentarily topped the Beatles new release!) Thanks to this exposure, the single shot to the top of the charts and Lorraine continues to promote it on her show. We'd love it to be the Christmas no 1.
You can buy Golden and download it on this link.
Although this has been a lot of fun, there is a serious message here which is why I am writing this blog. Breast cancer is treatable if caught at an early stage. I know more than anyone how frightening it is to find something unusual or irregular when you examine your breasts. But it is nothing 
compared to the fear and upset that would result if it is only discovered later down the line when it may have affected other areas. The poster on the left explains how straightforward it is to check. It is important to know your own body and its features so that you are the first to know that something has changed or isn't right. You may not end up on a TV show or billboard poster, nor want to, but you will have the gift of health.
I have never been more grateful to an awareness campaign in my life. So I hope my blog propels you to have conversations with the women in your life and for female colleagues and friends to have a quiet word with themselves and instill a new routine in their lives to check for changes.
I also hope my blog propels you to download 'Golden' to get people talking about the 'Change + Check' campaign and get us to No 1 for Christmas!