SITTING down for a storytime with her children was one of the most emotional moments of her life.

Rachel Drake was still struggling to comprehend her breast cancer diagnosis, but the one thing preying on her mind on the journey back from hospital in April last year where she had received the devastating news was how could she tell her children?

Accompanied by her husband Gareth, Rachel’s first stop was her parents. They’d been eager to find out the outcome of her appointment.

Arriving at their home there were plenty of hugs and, no doubt the shedding of many tears. “But what more can you say – you just have to deal with it,” says Rachel.

But the real challenge for Rachel lay ahead. “How on earth am I going to tell my children. Am I going to live to see them grow up and get married and have their own children?” she remembers thinking.

Conscious of the gruelling treatment and the effects it would have on her, Rachel was keen for Samuel and Emelia to know.

“But how do you explain to a five-year-old and an 11-year-old?” she asks.

The answer came by way of a book given to her at the hospital. Called Mummy’s Lump, it’s a child-friendly picture book for families confronted with cancer.

Thumbing through the pages with her children, Rachel was able to guide them gently through the exploits of the book’s characters Elly and Jack as they learn of their mother’s diagnosis and treatment for breast cancer.

“I am the softest person who cries at anything but I sat them down and said ‘I want to read you a story.’ It explains everything that happens with pictures, losing hair, feeling tired so they had a rough idea of things that would happen to Mummy so it wasn’t such a big shock for them to see when I had lost my hair,” recalls Rachel, from Bradford.

From then on Rachel’s lump became known as ‘Bubble’ “because I found it easier to say to the children rather than cancer – it is a hard word to use,” she explains.

Rachel’s ordeal began after she felt something strange, not a lump, but something which possibly needed investigating after putting her hand under her armpit as she turned in bed at night.

“I thought that feels a bit weird,” she recalls.

Encouraged by her devoted husband, Gareth, the pair have been together since their schooldays, she booked an appointment with the doctor straight away.

Rachel had always checked herself, as women are encouraged to do, but this wasn’t a lump, it was certainly something different.

A referral to St James’s Hospital in Leeds led Rachel through a series of biopsies and scans which, ultimately, revealed a fast-growing mass the size of a golf ball growing inside her breast.

“Gareth and I just looked at each other. He was welling up and I was just in shock. I thought I’m only 40, people get cancer when they are older. I thought ‘what about my family, am I going to die?”

Following six bouts of chemotherapy treatment, Rachel underwent radiotherapy. She also had a lumpectomy.

Recalling the key dates, at times she refers to her diary – the document she started following her diagnosis. “I started the diary because it helps me get all my emotions out rather than it going round and round in my head,” explains Rachel.

It was while undergoing her treatment that Rachel was introduced to the valuable work of The Robert Ogden Macmillan Centre and The Haven, organisations based in Leeds providing support services and complementary therapies for those with or affected by breast cancer.

“They help people going through cancer and I decided I wanted to try and give something back.”

Along with family and friends through fundraising events such as charity head shaves, Rachel has raised more than £9,000 which will benefit both charities.

Willmott Dixon Construction Ltd in Morley, where Rachel, a supply chain administrator, has worked for 20 years, held an auction raising £4,000.

Anthony Dillon, the firm’s managing director, says they were delighted to use their annual dinner “as an opportunity to raise some funds for such a good cause and an organisation that has helped such a respected and spirited member of our team.”.

Rachel had been looking forward to returning to work when she was dealt another blow.

She recalls being rushed into hospital for retention after she was unable to urinate. Investigations revealed a tumour in her womb. As well as having a hysterectomy Rachel’s ovaries were also removed.

Following her ordeal, Rachel now has regular check-ups. She remains positive and encourages anyone else facing, or going through, a similar experience to adopt a similar attitude.

“You never know how strong you are as a person until you hear those dreaded words ‘You Have Breast Cancer.’ The only person who can save you is you. A positive mental attitude will help keep you strong and determined to fight. Eat well, get plenty of rest and let others around you help with cooking, cleaning, the school run, anything that helps you out. You need your strength to fight the battle ahead. Keep positive – you will come through the other end.”

Rachel says her own experience has also made her put life into perspective.

“Life is for living now and make the most of it. Family is the main thing, and being happy.”

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month when many inspirational people, like Rachel, talk about their personal experiences to raise awareness and help others facing similar circumstances.

As well as raising awareness, merchandise is sold throughout the month to raise funds for Breast Cancer Care to continue the vital work providing information and support to those affected by breast cancer and their families.

Every year nearly 55,000 people are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK, that’s the equivalent of one person every 10 minutes

Breast cancer is the second most common cause of death from cancer in women in the UK and nearly 12,000 people die from breast cancer in the UK every year.

lFor more information Visit breastcancercare.org.uk