I know what it’s like to have your sex life turned upside down by breast cancer treatment. I’d only been married for a couple of years and neither my husband Dermot or I were prepared for what was about to happen. I wanted him to divorce me and find a woman with 2 healthy breasts and a libido to match.And I know I’m not alone. You’ve sent me so man…

Is it true that sugar feeds cancer? Do you really need to detox? What should you eat when you’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer? As a breast surgeon I had no idea my patients were scouring the internet looking for a miracle diet, but the minute I became a patient I realised how much misinformation is out there regarding what we should eat. On th…

Have you found out that you need to have radiotherapy? Do you want to know how it works or why you need it in the first place? Maybe you're worried about the side effects? In this episode I’m going to answer all your questions about radiotherapy with this weeks’ experts, Jo and Naman, the two therapeutic radiographers behind the award-winning podca…

One of the questions I dreaded getting asked when I worked as a breast surgeon was ‘How do I tell my children?’ I don’t have children of my own, and I had no idea what to say. My breast care nurses would step in and I would breathe a sigh of relief. Judging from all your questions this week, telling your children you have cancer can be fraught with…

One of the first questions my patients asked when I told them they needed chemo was ‘Am I going to lose my hair?’. And when your hair does fall out, there are even more questions. Why does it come back grey and curly? How do I explain to my children that I’m bald? Where can you find a decent wig? On this episode I’m going to answer all your questio…

Just hearing the words ‘you need chemotherapy’ can turn your world upside down. I hated telling my patients they needed it, and when I found I out I would have it myself, I felt lost.Would my hair fall out? How bad would it be? Would it work? How would I cope? Add to that the other drugs we give patients - targeted therapies and immunotherapy - it …

Are you struggling to decide what breast surgery to choose? Do you want to know if it’s worth having both breasts removed? How do you work out whether to have a breast reconstruction? There are so many things to consider when it comes to breast surgery, and in this episode I’m going to answer all your questions with this week’s guest, Anushka Chaud…

I'm really excited to tell you that we're starting season 2 with a bit of sparkle. Amy Dowden is one of the highest ranked ballroom and Latin American dancers in the county, and star of Saturday Night blockbuster TV show Strictly Come Dancing. And like many of you, I was so angry and sad when she told us that she had breast cancer in May last year …

I’m excited to announce that So Now I’ve Got Breast Cancer is back! Season two is coming soon, packed full of useful - and reliable - information for anyone who’s just been diagnosed, from how to tell your kids, to how chemo works, and what to eat… all powered by YOUR questions. Here’s a little flavour of season one, and details below of how you ca…

To mark the end of the month I’m releasing another bonus episode! This is a conversation I had in my previous podcast Don’t Ignore the Elephant which was hugely popular and I think could help you too. It’s all about sex, and I’m in conversation with sex expert Sam Evans - aka Sam Talks Sex. After Annice’s episode on the menopause, I had so many que…

Happy New Year everyone! While I prep season two I’m sharing a couple of bonus episodes with you. They’re conversations from my last podcast, Don’t Ignore the Elephant. I covered the things that no-one else talks about, and it touched a lot of people at the time. They’re subjects I’m really passionate about as a breast cancer patient myself, so tha…

Getting a diagnosis of breast cancer can be terrifying. One of the first thoughts that ran through my mind 8 years ago when I found a lump was ‘Am I going to die?’ It’s often the first question my patients asked me when I told them they needed chemo. You could say it’s a ridiculous question to ask, as we are all going to die at some point, but the …

Are you scared that you’ll get lymphoedema? Has anyone actually told you what it is? Do you wonder if there’s anything you can do to prevent it ? I’ve had so many questions about this - and it’s something that has worried me ever since I was diagnosed all those years ago. On this episode, I’m going to put your mind at ease and tell you everything y…

Do you ever wonder if every breast cancer patient is treated the same? I thought they were until I listened to this week’s guest talking about her experiences during treatment. Several of you shared your own stories with me saying that cancer isn’t talked about in your community. You’re also wondering why you don’t see yourself represented in breas…

Did you know that exercise should be the first treatment you get for breast cancer? Maybe you’re motivated to finally get fit but you don’t know where to start? Or has someone told you that exercise can stop your cancer coming back but you don’t believe it’s true? On this episode I’m answering all your questions about breast cancer and exercise wit…

Are you struggling to cope with the menopausal side effects of breast cancer treatment? Do you lie awake at night tossing and turning as the sweat pours off your body? Maybe you wish there was something you could take when HRT is off the table? On this episode I’m going to answer all your questions about breast cancer treatment and the menopause wi…

Being diagnosed with breast cancer floored me mentally. I could handle the side effects of chemo by swallowing tablet after tablet, but I couldn’t stop the thoughts running through my head. Like many of you, I would lie awake until the small hours of the morning thinking things like ‘Am I going to die?’, ‘IIs it going to come back?’ ‘How am I going…

How do you find a bra that fits after a mastectomy? Has your relationship with your breasts changed and you’re struggling to accept your new shape? Or maybe you don’t know how to check your breasts now that everything’s changed? This episode is all about breast health after breast cancer and I’m joined by the incredible Dr Philippa Kaye to answer y…

I’m kicking off this new season - and new podcast - with a special show. I’ll explain what to expect from So Now I’ve Got Breast Cancer, answer some of your questions and introduce you to our new podcast poet, the incredible Donna Ashworth. ******* If you want to find out more about the signs and symptoms of secondary breast cancer, here are some g…

I’ve got a very special announcement for you… the podcast is changing! It’s time to say goodbye to Don’t Ignore the Elephant, and hello to my new podcast - So Now I’ve Got Breast Cancer. I’m going to be focusing on all the issues that people you like face, when you’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer. You could say I’m an expert in breast cancer. …

This week’s guest is Natalie Woodward, a truly remarkable young woman. She was diagnosed with metastatic bowel cancer at the age of 36, but after a full year of treatment, the cancer started to grow. In the middle of the pandemic, she literally had the mother of all operations to remove it. She had to learn to walk again. To dance again. To accept …

This week’s guest is Eleanor Mills, award-winning journalist, editor and broadcaster who founded of Noon, an online community to bring together women celebrating the opportunities of midlife. She describes it as a time for transformation and reinvention as a Queenager, and I want to be one. Many of us reach a mid-life clusterf*ck when everything ca…

This week’s guest is Alex Hewitt, founder of AOK events, and he’s come on to talk about how he coped with severe anxiety when his world was crumbling around him. He wants to set a good example for his sons by opening up about his own mental health problems and encourage others to do the same. I’ve often wondered if men find it harder than women to …

This week’s guest is Maggie Hope. She’s a Psychotherapist and Counsellor and she’s come on to talk to me all about therapy. What is it? How do you know if you need it? What to expect when you have it? I’ve needed therapy at several times of my life, and I was ashamed to tell people about it. We talk about the importance of removing the stigma from …

This week’s guest is Felicity Cornelius-Mercer. She’s become the female James Blunt of Twitter by defending attacks on her husband Johnny Mercer, MP with humour and wit. We talk about the realities of living life in the public eye and what it’s like to work with your husband and still make a marriage work, and a little bit about male grooming. We a…

This week’s guest is the inspirational Jaz Ampaw-Farr, an award-winning motivational speaker who shifts mindsets and leaves her audience on a high. She’s known in the US as the ‘British Oprah’ who’s gone from broken to Beyonce (if you squint a bit). She had an awful childhood, subjected to poverty and horrific abuse at a very young age, but a handf…

My second guest is the wonderful Debbie Bliss MBE. She’s the most published knitwear designer in the world. She revolutionised the pattern industry and makes knitting cool. But she also looks cool as well. Debbie has had thymus and breast cancer and has accepted her new figure after a mastectomy. She’s a savvy business woman in her seventies and th…

The first episode of season two it a little bit different. It’s a legacy listen with my mum, Isobel. She was diagnosed with metastatic bone cancer three months before we recorded the interview. I wanted to chat to mum and find out what it was like for her when I got breast cancer, before talking about her own experiences as an amputee. Sadly Mum di…

How do we talk more openly about divorce? In the final episode of season one, veteran broadcaster Jane Garvey talks to me about her own experience of splitting up in the spotlight, why you should get on with your ex for the sake of your children, and how to kickstart your career when you reach ‘middle age’, whatever that might be. Jane almost needs…

Do you ever talk openly and honestly about money? Do you feel guilty or ashamed over how much you spend? Do you know how much is in your bank account at any given time? Does your partner know about your debts? Do your children know how to save for the future? Davinia Tomlinson is founder of RainChq, an organisation promoting financial inclusion to …

Clara Swedlund is a physique coach and sports psychologist who overcame bulimia and binge-eating in her teens and early twenties. She competes in bikini bodybuilding competitions and helps clients like me train to get strong and fit for life. She’s only too aware of the impact of social media when it comes to defining what a perfect body looks like…

Orla Chennaoui began her career as a news journalist but moved over to sports for the London 2012 Olympics. In 2019 she joined Eurosport as the lead presenter for cycling events, in a very male-dominated field. She was diagnosed with post-natal depression after the birth of her first child, and lives with anxiety on a daily basis. Orla spoke to me …

Kathryn Mannix is one of the UK’s leading palliative care specialists who carefully and tenderly encourages us to talk and learn more about the ultimate elephant in the room - death. Kathryn’s written two brilliant books on the subject - With the End in Mind And her latest book - Listen Kathryn is also a patron of End of Life Doula UK, an invaluabl…

Have you ever wondered what it’s like when a doctor becomes a patient? I thought I was unlucky when I got breast cancer but then I spoke to my next guest, the American ophthalmologist Dr Will Flanary. He had testicular cancer twice - first a med student and then as a junior doctor. But that’s not all. In 2020 Will had a cardiac arrest and his amazi…

For anyone with an interest in sex, intimacy and love - this show is for you. Sex after illness, cancer, the menopause, bereavement and when you’re older. Sex expert and retired nurse Sam Evans founder of Jo Divine and who’s personally helped me - joins me to talk about sex, more sex, lube and more lube and how embracing experimentation and making …

My first guest is the wonderful actor, writer and producer Greg Wise. He’s appeared on stage and screen as well as getting behind the lens to produce documentaries. At the moment he’s starring in Strictly Come Dancing, inspired by his sister Clare. Greg looked after her as she was dying from breast cancer. He picked up her blog when she was too unw…

Don’t Ignore the Elephant is a brand new podcast hosted by Dr Liz O’Riordan, the breast surgeon with breast cancer. For too long we’ve been scared to be open and honest about things that embarrass us or scare us. Things like depression, grief, and losing your sex drive. The elephants in the room. Liz will be getting them out in the open and asking …