Amy Dowden: 'I'm determined to go grab life after cancer treatment'

Strictly Come Dancing star Amy Dowden has said she is determined to “go grab life” after undergoing treatment for stage three breast cancer and fertility challenges.

Her forthcoming hour-long BBC documentary, Strictly Amy: Cancer And Me, shows her battle for her health, her future family, and her love for dance following her breast cancer diagnosis last year.

After a mastectomy and chemotherapy, the 34-year-old announced in February that she has “no evidence of disease” following tests, and she is due to return to the BBC dance competition for its 20th series after missing out last time.

Reflecting on what the experience has taught her, the Welsh professional dancer, who runs Art in Motion Dance Academy in Cradley Heath alongside her professional dance partner husband Ben Jones, said: “Go grab life. Nikki, a remarkable young lady in her 30s who I connected to online unfortunately passed away from breast cancer during my treatment last year.

“She always said ‘Go grab life’ – and that’s what she did. I’m determined to live by her motto.

“I’ve learned… having my hair, my eyebrows, my eyelashes stripped away from me… I gained two stone in weight. I was on steroids, chemo, broken foot – you name it – and I’ve learned that appearance really doesn’t matter.

“Your soul shines through. I was stripped bare and still accepted. I’ve learnt to love and appreciate every single moment even more in life.”

Dowden was diagnosed after finding a lump in her breast the day before going to the Maldives on her honeymoon with her husband, fellow professional dancer Ben Jones last year.

She then decided to document her journey undergoing cancer treatment after seeing the impact on others of her documentary discussing her Crohn’s disease and how it had helped her “accept” her own condition for the “first time ever”.

“I never thought I would ever, ever be diagnosed with breast cancer at 32,” she said.

“I only came across it because I was checking myself. If I wasn’t, I might not be here right now because I had grade three – the most aggressive type of cancer.

“If it can raise awareness and 10 people start checking themselves from watching this documentary, I could potentially save a life.

“Being in the public eye, I knew I wasn’t going to be able to shy away from it.

“It was scary and daunting and I did have friends and family saying ‘Are you sure you want to do this?’ But it gave me a focus as well throughout all of this.”

Within the documentary, Dowden also discusses her experience with fertility treatment after learning that she was going to be put into menopause due to having a hormone-fed cancer and because the chemotherapy would destroy a lot of cells within her body.

The dancer underwent an egg retrieval to give her and her husband the chance to try for a baby at some point in the future.

“I hope that, through the fertility treatment, that educates and helps people,” she said.

“There are so many women out there going through treatment, I want them to know they’re not alone. Get people understanding the pressures on couples to have children and that it’s not always easy and possible. The trolling online, to educate trollers.

“But most importantly, to get people checking themselves. You know your own body, it doesn’t even have to be a lump on your chest.

“If there’s something not right, to go to your GP. Early detection can save lives. And if you’re not checking, who is?”

Strictly Come Dancing has made headlines recently after a storm of controversy over the alleged treatment of contestants on the show.

For Dowden, the hope of returning to BBC show provided the motivation she needed to fight through the dark days of treatment.

She said: “Strictly is something I worked all my life for, and I wasn’t going to let cancer stop me from going back.

“Recovering from chemo was grim, it was awful. But the desire of being back on the dancefloor was what kept me motivated and determined.

“Everyone’s different. There’s no textbook on how to deal with cancer. No right or wrong way – you’ve got to do what’s right for you – but I needed that goal, I needed that purpose. Because I’m not sure what I would have done otherwise.”

– Strictly Amy: Cancer And Me will air on BBC One on Monday August 26 at 8pm.