A young mother from Norwich has been diagnosed with cancer for a second time in three years.
Nicole Fisk, a mother of a nine-year-old son, was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer at the age of 29 in October 2016 and given a 40pc chance of survival.
Miss Fisk, from Costessey, said: "When I was diagnosed I just kept crying. I couldn't believe I had cancer as I was so young. It was really tough."
She was put on an intensive 18-month treatment plan at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH) which involved seven rounds of chemotherapy and an eight hour double mastectomy and reconstruction operation. During treatment, she contracted sepsis three times and nearly lost her life as a result. Miss Fisk said she "kept crying" when she was given the all-clear at the end of 2017.
She added: "I was amazed that I had smashed that and survived everything. My friends, my family and I all managed to pull together."
But in November 2018 the Thomas Cook travel agent started getting a shoulder pain which doctors thought was a muscle spasm due to her horse-riding.
She added: "I knew it wasn't just a muscle spasm, especially when I started shaking uncontrollably and blacking out on a regular basis.
"When you've had cancer once it's always at the back of your mind. The thought of it never leaves and you think about it on a daily basis."
Two weeks ago Miss Fisk, now 32, had an MRI and a CT scan at NNUH which showed a 1.2cm area of secondary breast cancer in her shoulder blade bone.
She said: "It's smashed my world again."
Her best friend, Danielle Garner, 28, said that the diagnosis has "broken my heart" but "wanted to do something positive" for Miss Fisk so held a fundraising event at The Boundary pub on Aylsham Road last Saturday.
The mother-of-one raised £4,500 through a tombola, a raffle and an auction - which included a signed football from Wayne Rooney and a holiday to North Devon.
Miss Garner said: "The event was absolutely amazing, everything went right and we all enjoyed a couple of drinks!"
The money will help Miss Fisk support her son when she starts treatment.
She added: "I just want to enjoy the school holidays as much as we can."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here