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Student overcomes same cancer as mum to graduate

University of Salford The first image in this photo montage shows Lucy Wiswould-Green smiling while sitting in a wheelchair and with a headscarf surrounded by other people, grass and trees. The second image shows her in a dark waistcoat top and trousers, smiling and holding an awardUniversity of Salford
Lucy Wiswould-Green, 24, was determined to continue her degree in dance, despite the challenges she faced

A student who nursed her mother while she had cancer before being diagnosed with the same illness has graduated with a first-class honours degree.

Lucy Wiswould-Green cared for mother Melissa from when she was told she had Hodgkin lymphoma in 2019 to her getting the all-clear the following year.

After going to the University of Salford in 2020, Lucy, 24, was told she had the same form of cancer.

She postponed her studies for treatment temporarily, but vowed "not to let [cancer] get the best of me" and this month graduated with her top-level degree in Dance.

University of Salford Lucy Wiswould-Green sits in a chair during treatment for cancer, with her mum on a chair next to her. Both are wearing masks University of Salford
Lucy Wiswould-Green was supported by her mum during her chemotherapy treatment

Despite her recovery from cancer, Melissa was ill in hospital for several months in 2020 but insisted her daughter went to university.

Lucy, from Lincoln, said: "She really encouraged me to take my place at Salford that year.

"She kept saying, 'Just go. I'll be fine!'

"When she got out of hospital and came back to Lincoln, I went to Salford a week later."

'Unstoppable force'

In her second year of studies she began to experience health problems including night sweats, a rash whenever she had an alcoholic drink, and lumps in her neck.

An ultrasound showed another lump in her chest and, after further tests, a doctor told her she had Hodgkin lymphoma.

Lucy said: "I remember saying that I wasn't scared about what I was about to go through, but that I was scared that my mum was going to watch me go through what she had."

Lucy postponed her third year and began chemotherapy.

She said it helped that her mother knew exactly what she was going through during her treatment.

"I was not going to let it get the best of me. I was going to go back and finish my degree," Lucy added.

During her recovery she raised money for the Teenage Cancer Trust, which had supported, and in May won an outstanding commitment award at her university's Create Student Awards.

Dance lecturer, Sarah Jane Lockwood, said Lucy was an "unstoppable force" who had shown "outstanding motivation".

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