A young mum has suffered a devastating start to the new year after being told the cancer she thought was beaten has returned.

Amy Meehan spent most of 2008 undergoing gruelling treatment after being diagnosed with advanced cervical cancer in March.

However, after more than six months of daily radiotherapy and weekly chemotherapy at St James’s Hospital in Leeds, doctors told the 21-year-old there was no sign of the cancer on scans.

The welcome news left Amy, of Melton Terrace, Ravenscliffe, Bradford, looking forward to the new year and a holiday.

However, on Monday cancer specialists called Amy to a meeting at St James’s to tell her the results of a final MRI scan.

“I had the scan on Friday and they phoned me up and asked me to come in on Monday,” she said.

“As soon as I walked in the room I knew something was wrong – there were two nurses there as well as the doctor, which is unusual.

“I sat down and the doctor asked me if I had been feeling OK.”

Amy had put any feelings of sickness down to the excesses of the festive season, however the scan results told a different story.

“My doctor said the results were not so good – the cancer had come back and it will be harder to fight this time,” said Amy. “I am totally devastated. I do not think I am as strong as I was before.”

Amy, who lives with her mum, Janet Rollin, and four-year-old daughter Rachel Louise, will have tests under general anaesthetic on Tuesday to enable doctors to establish the extent of the cancer. They will then make a decision about further treatment.

“The options are a hysterectomy or if I am not able to have that, chemotherapy – but this time it will be twice as hard,” said Amy.

“I have been told I can’t have radiotherapy again.

“I am gutted I will have to put my life on hold again. I thought it was going to be a new year, new start but it turns out to be the same as last year.”