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Wimborne mum's cancer 'turmoil' shared in online diary

Barbara Jeffery Barbara Jeffery and her childrenBarbara Jeffery
Barbara Jeffery said she had experienced a "rollercoaster of joy and challenges"

A young mother has shared the "raw realties" of her late-stage cancer in an intimate online diary.

Barbara Jeffery, from Wimborne, Dorset, said a misdiagnosed "blocked milk duct" in her breast eventually led to a terminal brain cancer diagnosis.

The 32-year-old is campaigning for breast screening before and after pregnancy.

Mrs Jeffery said her "brutally honest" Instagram posts revealed "the good, the bad and the ugly" of life with cancer.

The blog, under the name "bwjstage4cancer", reveals details of her medical treatment, emotional journey and impaired speech and movement.

Barbara Jeffery Craig and Barbara JefferyBarbara Jeffery
She was diagnosed with breast cancer shortly after becoming engaged to Craig, a serving police officer

She said she had experienced a "rollercoaster of joy and challenges" when stage three breast cancer was diagnosed in November 2022 and the stage four brain cancer was subsequently found in June.

"I don't cry the way I used to... actually the pain is deeper," she says in one post, in which she sobs and reveals her double mastectomy scars.

Another post describes her "inner turmoil" and "meltdown" when 13 secondary brain cancers were diagnosed.

"This was the moment that everything I had been fighting for came crashing down," she says.

"In my early 30s I was going to leave my two young children, aged just one and two, without a mother, and my new husband a widower."

Barbara Jeffery Barbara JefferyBarbara Jeffery
Mrs Jeffery shared intimate pictures of her medical treatment

The blog speaks of "optimism, positivity, future" as she underwent whole-brain radiotherapy in July.

However, Mrs Jeffery said she was frustrated at being denied promising cancer drugs which were not specifically approved for her situation.

She said she had raised the issue of breast screening for pregnant women and new mothers with her local MP, and hoped that it would be discussed by the National Screening Committee later this year.

Breast cancer is reported in one in every 3,000 pregnancies, according to Cancer Research UK.

Donors have given more than £5,000 to the family through online fundraising pages to pay for home improvements and holidays.

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