Breast cancer: Sisters who lost both parents to cancer are shattered by identical diagnoses six weeks apart

Sign up to our free Living Well email for advice on living a happier, healthier and longer life Live your life healthier and happier with our free weekly Living Well newsletter Live your life healthier and happier with our free weekly Living Well newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “We didn’t know it was stage two at that point and my fear was that she was going to die because that would ruin me.” open image in gallery Pat Corr and Frances Corr on their wedding day in 1963 She added: “I was terrified I would be the survivor and she wouldn’t be.” Both given a prognosis of 20 years to live, Cathy, who lives with her wife, Alana Corr, 42, a nursing care home manager, in Windsor, Berkshire, did her best to find the funny side in her “sharing” breast cancer with her sister, but deep down, found the diagnosis frightening, given their family history. “He gave me a purpose to get out of bed in the morning, even if I didn’t feel like it.” In reverse to Tracey’s treatment, Cathy had six rounds of chemotherapy in June 2017 before having a mastectomy later in the year and reconstructive surgery in 2018. open image in gallery The three sisters with a bag dedicated to their late sister Rosemary, known as ‘Dodo’ But despite both losing their hair and having mastectomies and aggressive medication, the sisters continued to work at their respective jobs, both doing around 30 hours a week, with Tracey at David Lloyd in York and Cathy as a regional manager with Vodafone. open image in gallery Cathy and Tracey were diagnosed with breast cancer six weeks apart “Seeing everybody was so emotional and crossing the finish line with them all was incredible,” Tracey said. open image in gallery Cathy and Tracey together last year “Tracey and I were so grateful to have each other to talk to and discuss the treatment and symptoms and everything, because this is a life changing thing.”But once you’ve had your treatment, you get sent off and there is no after care there, so we want to give someone that peace of mind and offer that support mechanism post cancer.” You can help donate to Tracey and Cathy’s fundraiser here – https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/tracey-ands-race-for-life