Sarah, Duchess of York has warned “everybody needs to get screening” as she opened a cutting-edge breast cancer diagnostic unit.
The duchess, who had a mastectomy last year, met staff at the Chiltern Hospital in Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire, on Thursday to mark Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
She urged women not to miss their mammograms and to seek help straight away if they feel something needs investigating, saying: “Everybody needs to get screening.
Sarah, Duchess of York, poses with staff during a visit to The Chiltern Hospital (James Manning/PA)
“Missing a mammogram is not a sensible thing to do, however busy or anxious you might be.
“And if you have any concerns, any concerns at all, don’t hesitate. I hope anyone who hasn’t gone to get checked will now go and get checked.”
The duchess, who celebrated her birthday this week, said in a speech to staff: “I was 65 on Tuesday and it’s thanks to dedicated medical teams like the one I’ve met today that I’m here, because it’s not just one person, it’s a team effort.
“When I was diagnosed my mind went to the darkest of places, and of course you go straight online and google mastectomy.”
The duchess cuts a cake as she opens the refurbished unit (James Manning/PA)
She added: “You’re so frightened you think you can’t go and get screened because you could be facing a death sentence.
“But it’s not like that because of the wonderful healthcare teams that are available, whether it’s the oncologists or imaging staff.”
The visit came as the duchess posted her first TikTok, in which she spoke about her breast cancer journey after the shock of her diagnosis.
In the clip on her new account, the mother of Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, who was filmed sitting outdoors, said she felt “hollow” and “total abject fear” when she was first diagnosed, adding: “I just didn’t speak … I just shut down. I went back into a little girl.”
The duchess poses at the reception desk (James Manning/PA)
But she added: “It’s only now, I’m really proud of my scars. They’re really important. I never thought you could free the shackles of your heart by cancer… To realise everything is going to be OK. You can find joy.”
Sarah, patron of the Prevent Breast Cancer charity, was also treated for malignant melanoma skin cancer in January, just months after undergoing her mastectomy.
At the Circle Health Group’s private Chiltern Hospital, she opened and was shown around the £900,000 refurbished imaging department, which features a cutting-edge mammography unit providing breast tomosynthesis (3D), contrast enhanced mammography, new stereotactic and vacuum biopsy and breast density technology.
Sarah, Duchess of York, is shown a contrast enhanced mammography machine (James Manning/PA)
One in 10 breast cancers are diagnosed late and the disease is the biggest cause of death in women aged 35-49, according to Prevent Breast Cancer.
But the survival rate for patients diagnosed with breast cancer has doubled in the last 50 years, with earlier detection and faster diagnoses making the biggest difference.