AN Erskine woman who was shocked to be diagnosed with breast cancer decided to fight the disease through fundraising back in 2009.
Gillian Thomson hoped big-hearted Renfrewshire businesses would donate prizes so a stack of cash could be raised for charities that help cancer sufferers.
The mum-of-two told The Gazette at the time: “You just never think cancer will happen to you.
“It’s not until you’re in that vulnerable position that you appreciate the amazing people out there who help you.”
The dental nurse, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2007 when she was 37, added: “My heart goes out to women who are just starting their treatment.”
When Gillian was first diagnosed, she described it as “like a bad dream that I couldn’t wake up from.”
She said: “I qualified for the ‘full package’, my oncologist told me.
“It sounded like a beauty treatment but what he meant was I was in for a long journey – chemotherapy, a mastectomy, reconstruction and radiotherapy.”
Supported by a breast cancer team at the Beatson Institute, in Glasgow, experts at Paisley’s Royal Alexandra Hospital and charities such as Macmillan and Breast Cancer Scotland, Gillian began the long road of treatment.
She told how she tried to stay upbeat throughout the gruelling process, although she also admitted there were plenty of days when she found it difficult to adopt a positive mental attitude.
“I would awake and think ‘I can’t do this today’,” said Gillian at the time.
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