My dog was crying and acting really weirdly – but it was ME who had the problem
A WOMAN claims she wouldn’t be alive today if her dog hadn’t “sniffed out” her breast cancer.
Claire Churchill adopted Jack Russell-chihuahua cross Holly after she was dumped on the doorstep of a rescue centre on Christmas Day in 2019.
The pair lived happily together for the following six months, but the pup kept acting “weirdly”.
She was “scratching”, “crying” and “murmuring” at her owner, and constantly pawing at her chest.
Claire, 36, then noticed she had a lump in her left boob and was subsequently diagnosed with cancer.
She told YorkshireLive: “When I first got Holly, I thought she was just weird as she would always stuff her nose down my top.
“As she got bigger towards the summer of 2020, she started pawing at my boob – only my left – and started scratching.
“She used to fall asleep on my left breast, not the other. It was going on and on and on.”
By August 2020, Holly was almost in tears and wouldn’t leave Claire’s left breast alone.
“I thought I had some crisps or a biscuit down there but she was really distressed,” she said.
Claire said she felt a bump so called her GP, but it took until October to finally be seen due to Covid.
“By that time it was the size of an orange and you could see it through my bra and top,” she added.
Claire was diagnosed with breast cancer in November and later discovered it had spread to her lymph nodes.
She underwent chemotherapy and radiotherapy before having a mastectomy in December last year.
While there is now no evidence of the disease in her body, Claire will have to undergo another mastectomy and hysterectomy as she carries the BRCA gene so it at a higher risk of it returning.
She thanks Holly for the fact she is still alive.
“If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have known and would have died,” Claire said.
“I never checked myself as I thought breast cancer was something that happened to women in their 60s and 70s, not early 30s.”
Now she’s been given the all-clear, Holly has stopped pestering her human.
She said: “It’s like she’s satisfied and happy the cancer has gone.
“She’s three now and is my little angel. I don’t know what I’d do without her.
“I’m so grateful and thankful to her. And she’s a rescue – she hasn’t been trained to do this she just knew.
“If you can, please get a rescue dog. Not only are you saving their lives but they can save yours.”
What is breast cancer and how does it spread?
Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer in the UK - with one woman diagnosed every ten minutes.
While most women can get breast cancer, it is most common in women who are over the age of 50.
According to Cancer Research UK, breast cancer starts in the breast tissue.
Breast cancer develops when abnormal cells in the breast begin to grow and divide in an uncontrolled way and eventually form a growth.
Most invasive breast cancers are found in the upper-outer quadrant of the breast.
If it’s not diagnosed and treated it can move through the lymph or blood vessels to other areas of the body.
Each year in the UK there are around 55,200 new breast cancer cases.
This equates to around 150 new cases a day.
It also accounts for 15 per cent of all new cancer cases each year.
If the cancer is diagnosed at its earliest stage then 98 per cent of people will survive the disease for five years or more.
If it is diagnosed at the latest stage, then just 26 per cent of people survive for five years or more.
What are the four stages of breast cancer?
Stage one: The cancer is small and only in the breast tissue – but can also be found in lymph nodes close to the breast.
Stage two: The cancer is either in the breast or in the nearby lymph nodes or both.
Stage three: The cancer has spread from the breast to the lymph nodes or the skin of the breast or the chest wall.
Stage four: The cancer has spread to other parts of the body.
What are the signs?
- A lump in the breast or armpit
- Changes in the positioning of the nipple
- Nipples leaking in women who have not had children
- Skin changes