Sarah Beeny reveals the moment she told her sons she had breast cancer

‘I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it’: Sarah Beeny reveals the moment she told her four sons she had breast cancer as she promised to be ‘honest’ with them about her illness

• The Property Ladder presenter shares four sons Billy, 18, Charlie, 16, Rafferty, 14, and Laurie, 12, with her husband of 19 years Graham Swift 
• The TV presenter and property expert has explained she was given the diagnosis three weeks ago and has started chemotherapy 
• She will have a mastectomy and radiotherapy in the New Year 
• The Macmillan Support Line is a free and confidential phone service for people living and affected by cancer. Call 0808 808 00 00 for support 

Sarah Beeny has revealed the heartbreaking moment she revealed to her four sons she had breast cancer.

The TV presenter and property expert, 50, was diagnosed three weeks ago and has already undergone her first chemotherapy appointment.

And in an interview, Sarah explained that she had a ‘little chat’ with her boys and that she ‘I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it’, before promising them she would be completely ‘honest’ with her illness.

Opening up: Sarah Beeny has revealed the heartbreaking moment she revealed to her four sons she had breast cancer

The Property Ladder presenter shares four sons Billy, 18, Charlie, 16, Rafferty, 14, and Laurie, 12, with her husband of 19 years Graham Swift.

Of the moment she broke the sad news, Sarah told The Telegraph: ‘My eldest came in and I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. 

‘He said, “Are you all right? You haven’t got cancer or something, have you?”. I said, “Um, I have, actually”. He said, “Sorry?”. I said, “Yeah, I have”.

‘Then the others came in, we had a little chat and it was kind of fine. They just said, “You will be honest?,” and I said, “I promise you that I’m going to be around for a jolly long time yet”.’

Illness: The TV presenter and property expert, 50, was diagnosed three weeks ago and has already undergone her first chemotherapy appointment

Sarah’s honestly with her children comes after she wasn’t told of her mother’s illness, who died from breast cancer when Sarah was just 10-years-old. 

Her mother Ann’s death deeply affected the TV star and her own illness has ‘opened a tinderbox of stuff’ that  she’s ‘swept under the carpet’ for a long time. 

And while Sarah didn’t want to make a ‘big deal’ about breaking her cancer news to her sons, she told how she considered not telling her husband of 19 years ‘so it didn’t seem real’.

She detailed how she got her test results alone because she ‘didn’t want him to’ come, adding that her actions were ‘weird in a way’. 

Family: The Property Ladder presenter shares four sons Billy, 18, Charlie, 16, Rafferty, 14, and Laurie, 12, with her husband of 19 years Graham Swift 

She continued: ‘There was a little moment where I thought, maybe I won’t tell anyone. I won’t even tell him. I don’t know why; maybe I thought if I did that it wouldn’t become real. That didn’t last very long.

‘But sometimes you have to find something inside yourself; you have to focus and centre to find your inner strength, and say, “Come on!” We all have our own coping mechanisms, don’t we, and mine is to kind of go into myself a bit and then come out.’

While Sarah has now decided to go public with her diagnosis, she revealed she would not be telling her father Richard, who suffered a stroke five years ago and now has ‘forgetfulness.’

Conversation: Sarah explained that she had a ‘little chat’ with her boys and that she ‘I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it’, before promising them she would be completely ‘honest’ with her illness (pictured in 2021)

Candid: ‘The others came in, we had a little chat and it was kind of fine. They just said, “You will be honest?,” and I said, “I promise you that I’m going to be around for a jolly long time yet”‘

Sarah’s mother Ann died of cancer at the age of 39 when Sarah was just 10-years-old and she confessed that she’s concerned her father would confuse the two. 

Sarah will undergo a mastectomy and radiotherapy in the New Year and said she was ‘getting one step ahead’ of the disease by cutting her hair and donating it to a charity who provides free wigs to children with cancer. 

Sarah admitted in an interview with The Telegraph that she had always suspected she would be diagnosed with the disease and had ‘waited 40 years to hear those words’ after her mother Ann died of cancer at the age of 39 when Sarah was just 10-years-old. 

Sarah, who presents shows including Help! My House Is Falling Down and Sarah Beeny’s New Life In The Country, received the diagnosis after finding a lump which led to a biopsy.

Heartbreaking: She donated her hair after her first chemotherapy treatment, enlisting her sons Billy, 18, Charlie, 16, Rafferty, 14, and Laurie, 12, to make the cut 

Charitable: Sarah said she was ‘getting one step ahead’ of the disease by cutting her hair and donating it to a charity who provides free wigs to children with cancer

She has been told the cancer has not spread and ‘there is an 80 percent chance of a cure.’ 

The star’s mother had breast cancer which spread to her brain and she died aged 39, when Beeny was 10. 

Sarah admitted that she had ‘a little bit of a breakdown’ in the consultation room,’ but explained to the nurse:  ‘You don’t understand. I have waited 40 years to hear those words. I knew I was going to hear it one day.’

Days after starting chemotherapy she decided to enlist her four sons, who she shares with her artist husband to help cut off her hair.

Loss: Sarah, 50, admitted that she has ‘waited 40 years to hear those words’ after her mother died of cancer at the age of 39 when Sarah was just 10-years-old (Sarah and her brother pictured with their mother)

She admitted that Billy, 18, Charlie, 16, Rafferty, 14, and Laurie, 12, are ‘not going to be famous hairdressers’ after the uneven cut.

She documented the moment in an Instagram post, writing: ‘A little pile of not very good condition hair on it’s way to @officiallittleprincesstrust – my trainee hairdressers cut off my hair on Friday night – getting one step ahead after first chemo treatment for breast cancer on Friday – the exclusive club you’d rather not be a member of!’

Despite her diagnosis, Sarah has said she will continue to work and is currently focused on a new Channel 4 series and book she has planned for later in the year.

Sarah has previously spoken openly about losing her mother at a young age, telling the Daily Mail in 2020: ‘Death is hard for a child to get their head around but I was close to Diccon [my brother] and my father, and you just get on with it.’

‘The only positive thing about losing her when I was so young is that, to me, she’ll always be entirely perfect.’

20 years on TV: Despite her diagnosis, Sarah has said she will continue to work and is currently focused on a new Channel 4 series and book (pictured on August 24)

Sarah’s four sons, who have formed a band, recently dedicated a song to her, with the proud mum taking to Instagram on Mother’s Day to share the track with fans.

The four boys have named their group Entitled Sons -a cheeky reference to their privileged upbringing. 

The song, titled Unconditional sees the property mogul’s face on the front cover merged ‘creepily’ with her son Charlie’s.

A delighted Sarah was moved by their dedication, made with the help of their Father.

Captioning the post: ‘It was worth every moment when your sons write a song for you like this!! It’s on presale now and out next week #luckymother – link in my bio.’

The Macmillan Support Line is a free and confidential phone service for people living and affected by cancer. Call 0808 808 00 00 for support 

Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world and affects more than two MILLION women a year

Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. Each year in the UK there are more than 55,000 new cases, and the disease claims the lives of 11,500 women. In the US, it strikes 266,000 each year and kills 40,000. But what causes it and how can it be treated?

What is breast cancer?

Breast cancer develops from a cancerous cell which develops in the lining of a duct or lobule in one of the breasts.

When the breast cancer has spread into surrounding breast tissue it is called an ‘invasive’ breast cancer. Some people are diagnosed with ‘carcinoma in situ’, where no cancer cells have grown beyond the duct or lobule.

Most cases develop in women over the age of 50 but younger women are sometimes affected. Breast cancer can develop in men though this is rare.

Staging means how big the cancer is and whether it has spread. Stage 1 is the earliest stage and stage 4 means the cancer has spread to another part of the body.

The cancerous cells are graded from low, which means a slow growth, to high, which is fast growing. High grade cancers are more likely to come back after they have first been treated.

What causes breast cancer?

A cancerous tumour starts from one abnormal cell. The exact reason why a cell becomes cancerous is unclear. It is thought that something damages or alters certain genes in the cell. This makes the cell abnormal and multiply ‘out of control’.

Although breast cancer can develop for no apparent reason, there are some risk factors that can increase the chance of developing breast cancer, such as genetics.

What are the symptoms of breast cancer?

The usual first symptom is a painless lump in the breast, although most breast lumps are not cancerous and are fluid filled cysts, which are benign. 

The first place that breast cancer usually spreads to is the lymph nodes in the armpit. If this occurs you will develop a swelling or lump in an armpit.

How is breast cancer diagnosed?

• Initial assessment: A doctor examines the breasts and armpits. They may do tests such as a mammography, a special x-ray of the breast tissue which can indicate the possibility of tumours.
• Biopsy: A biopsy is when a small sample of tissue is removed from a part of the body. The sample is then examined under the microscope to look for abnormal cells. The sample can confirm or rule out cancer.

If you are confirmed to have breast cancer, further tests may be needed to assess if it has spread. For example, blood tests, an ultrasound scan of the liver or a chest x-ray.

How is breast cancer treated?

Treatment options which may be considered include surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone treatment. Often a combination of two or more of these treatments are used.

• Surgery: Breast-conserving surgery or the removal of the affected breast depending on the size of the tumour.
• Radiotherapy: A treatment which uses high energy beams of radiation focussed on cancerous tissue. This kills cancer cells, or stops cancer cells from multiplying. It is mainly used in addition to surgery.
• Chemotherapy: A treatment of cancer by using anti-cancer drugs which kill cancer cells, or stop them from multiplying
• Hormone treatments: Some types of breast cancer are affected by the ‘female’ hormone oestrogen, which can stimulate the cancer cells to divide and multiply. Treatments which reduce the level of these hormones, or prevent them from working, are commonly used in people with breast cancer.

How successful is treatment?

The outlook is best in those who are diagnosed when the cancer is still small, and has not spread. Surgical removal of a tumour in an early stage may then give a good chance of cure.

The routine mammography offered to women between the ages of 50 and 70 mean more breast cancers are being diagnosed and treated at an early stage.

For more information visit breastcancercare.org.uk, breastcancernow.org or www.cancerhelp.org.uk

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